FARU - 2010http://dl.lib.uom.lk/handle/123/147072024-03-29T00:39:55Z2024-03-29T00:39:55ZEgypt's vernacular architecture, from rural settlement to exotic resortsSakr, MMhttp://dl.lib.uom.lk/handle/123/83892019-08-15T03:15:44ZEgypt's vernacular architecture, from rural settlement to exotic resorts
Sakr, MM
For millennia, the Nubians of Upper Egypt
faced harsh climatic conditions and scarcity of
building materials. Yet they succeeded in
building their shelters by using mud bricks to
build thick walls, arches, domes and vaults.
Nubian vernacular architecture, with its
aesthetics and functionality was not
discovered and appreciated until the late
Egyptian Architect Hassan Fathy had started
to study their settlements, architectural
elements and building techniques in 1946.
Since then Fathy has incorporated the
traditional mud brick vaults and domes in his
designs. His work is considered to be a revival
in Traditional Architecture, and he became
known for his theory of "Construction for the
poor".
Unfortunately most of his theories were
neglected, and what attracted a number of
architects was the use of traditional
architectural elements. This led to the
emergence of what can be called "Hassan
Fathy Style", a style that has been applied
tremendously in the past three decades to
create luxurious resorts on the Red Sea
shores. Such appropriation was encouraged
by investors and developers to create an
attractive and exotic built environment, one
that fulfills the dreams of tourists who come
to the region to enjoy the sea, sun plus an
extra piece of cultural heritage.
The aim of this paper is to trace the evolution and revival of a type of Egyptian Vernacular
architecture, and how it is transplanted in a
new environmental, cultural and social
context. The failure or success of this trend
needs to be assessed, as it can either be a
step on creating Neo vernacular architecture
or just an abuse of Egypt's cultural and
architectural heritage
Architectural design & labour policy-making: reinterpreting vernacular as a strategy for capacity building in the urbanizing SouthPathiraja, Mhttp://dl.lib.uom.lk/handle/123/83882019-08-15T03:11:10ZArchitectural design & labour policy-making: reinterpreting vernacular as a strategy for capacity building in the urbanizing South
Pathiraja, M
Over the last 30 years, many countries in Asia,
Africa, and Latin America have experienced a
strong expansion of their urban economy,
irreversible changes to their rural economy,
an increase in urban land values, internal
migration, and the urbanization of the poor.
Today, in many large cities of the region,
these factors have facilitated and intensified
the fragmentation of construction activity into
almost separate spheres of production, with
little or no reciprocal connections in training,
know-how, and career-development paths,
and consequent limitations in cross-system
application of technology transfer.
In such context, the discursive references of
vernacular to create technically and culturally
exclusive niche markets for architectural
production could only reinforce the crossmarket
compartmentalization of building
knowledge, and the subsequent inability of
architecture to engage in social building
production activities. Instead, this paper
looks at the vernacular from a labour policy-making
point of view, that is to integrate its
'on-the-job' training conceptions within a
design and technological vocabulary that
envisages real building projects as training
grounds, thereby projecting the latter as a
vehicle through which labour development
opportunities are created and linked.
Community participation towards vernacular future's re-settlement for Orang Seletar at Kampung Bakar Batu, Johor Bahru, MalaysiaKu, YKhttp://dl.lib.uom.lk/handle/123/83872019-08-15T03:14:20ZCommunity participation towards vernacular future's re-settlement for Orang Seletar at Kampung Bakar Batu, Johor Bahru, Malaysia
Ku, YK
"Orang Seletar" is a diminishing maritime
indigenous people or known as "Orang Laut
Asli" who lived for centuries along the coast
of Straits of Johore in between Malaysia and
Singapore. There are currently less than two
thousand remaining people and they are not
wary of their own declining population,
unaware of the modern world and caught in
hardcore poverty problems. The current
settlement which was built for them in
Kampung Bakar Batu was once an estuary
with rich sea lives which sustain the existence
of these sea people. Unfortunately the
settlement is now badly populated and has
been targeted for major urban development
area in the future Iskandar Region
development. "Orang Seletar" settlement
(built by Natives and indigenous people
concern department) consists of small
singular single storey stone houses were built
in the middle of the land, away from the sea,
disregarding the importance of sea to their
existing maritime lifestyle, believes, culture
and heritage.
The paper aims to understand the existing
Orang Seletar socio-culture as a basis for their
future resettlement at Kampung Bakar Batu.
This paper will capture the research and
design process carried out with a group of 32
students and three lecturers on failure of
existing government initiated housing.
Community Participation has been used as a
method to rectify and understand these
people needs. Data from questionnaires and
interview were analyzed to form a master
plan and design concept that mainly targeted
at reviving the socio culture and improving
socio-economy of these people. The team will
explore design alternatives from modern to
traditional vernacular in approach. The
options will be presented to Orang Seletar
community and these people's priority is to
not about preserving their culture and
tradition, but to survive further to adapt to
the modern world. Design of resettlements
must put into account their self-sufficient
ways to modernized and be competitive in the
future worlds. Thus, this directly impacts their
vernacular resettlement futures in their
architecture.
Vernacular nautical architecture in transition: a case study of traditional Sri Lankan fishing craftDevendra, Shttp://dl.lib.uom.lk/handle/123/83822019-08-15T03:27:46ZVernacular nautical architecture in transition: a case study of traditional Sri Lankan fishing craft
Devendra, S
This paper concerns the so-called
"catamarans" often considered archetypal Sri
Lankan craft. These are of great antiquity
although their age can only be guessed. The
vernacular form evolved from the available
bio-resources and the nature of inshore
waters. The craft were made only of wood
with all fastenings being, by choice, of
coconut coir rope ,Ai a common Indian Ocean
till technology till comparatively recently.
They were dual-element craft, comprising of
dug-out hull connected to outrigger float by
spars. The entire craft was "flexible" and thus
could cope with surf-induced torque. The hull
being a monoxylon, its tough, rounded
bottom could withstand frequent abrasion
from crossing sand spits and being hauled up
the beach. It was essentially a "skimming"
craft, without a displacement hull and, hence,
completely different from the doubleoutrigger
craft of south-east Asia and
Madagascar and the east African coast. Its
origin can, perhaps, be linked to those of
Oceania. The Sri Lankan craft remained
unchanged for what must have been
millennia. In the last quarter of the last
century, changes manifested themselves: the
gradual use of iron nails; the increasing use of
GRP and of nylon cordage; the use of
outboard motors and the consequent
morphological changes such as the
substitution for the double-ended
configuration of a fixed bow and stern and
others. The reasons for change included
deforestation, changing priorities in life, cost
of manufacture, loss of skills etc. that are
dealt with in the paper. An important aspect
is that, even the use of new materials and
techniques has not changed the basic dual-element
form of the craft. This apparent
contradiction raises a fundamental question:
when, in the course of transition, does a
vernacular form cease to be vernacular? This
paper is the first attempt to record the
process of the ongoing transition of these
craft.