Spark Distribution: Urban Microchip (2017)
SNU Architectural Design Studio 4-1
Instructor: John Hong
Malaysiaβs capital, Kuala Lumpur, is a dense, multicultural city where Malay, Indian, and Chinese communitiesβand Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhismβcoexist amid sharp contrasts between a hot, humid climate, traditional shophouses, lush greenery, and glass towers. Chinatown is one of the most intense points of tension, where historic shophouse markets and informal street life collide with box-like high-rise developments driven by MRT expansion, raising the question of whether traditional markets and large-scale development can truly coexist. At the same time, Kuala Lumpur suffers from low public transport use, car dependency, unreliable buses, and a harsh walking environment, even as elements like the β5-foot wayβ hint at how architecture can mediate climate and movement. In response to these cultural and infrastructural conflicts, my project proposes a hybrid building in Malaysia that integrates a department store, a convention center, and a multi-modal transit hub into a single architectural complex, using one continuous system to link commerce, civic life, and urban mobility while rethinking how people, goods, and flows move through the city.
1/200 scale model_01
1/200 scale model_02