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BAAS Year 1 - Spring 2024

HOUSE FOR FLOWERS

Advisor:

Tianying Li

Student(s):

Keung, Yan Chi Katie

Studio introduction:

Modern architecture, conforming to the accelerated social and cultural standards of the interior environment, demands insulated greenhouses that maintain stable temperature and humidity levels while resisting external climatic fluctuations. The "hearth" of primitive huts, once both a source of heat and light and a symbol of social gathering, has now been replaced by the intricate infrastructure of air conditioning systems that effectively regulate indoor climates. This studio looks at flower shops in Fa Hui, Kowloon. Each store operates as a distinct microcosm originating from another geographical location on the planet, montaging a distinct weather, a different season, as well as a tiny sample of its original geographical terrain. Its manufactured climate nurtures specific plant species. To create an illusion of detachment from their immediate surroundings, these shops employ specially designed thresholds sealing an immersive experience of a distinct space and time. Despite the illusion of isolation, the stores remain meshed within the urban fabric to secure the compulsive cycling of water, heat, air, and energy. A flower shop is a shared room with doubled comfort zones. It accommodates the simultaneous needs of two living organisms: humans and plants. However, conditions homely for one may be hostile for the other. To ensure the survival of the plants, the indoor environment must be subdivided and recalibrated. This shared room is challenged by the common nemesis of indoors - water, extreme temperatures, humidity, and strong light - elements vital to plants, rendering the artificially conditioned comfort zones no longer a default background.

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