Sunday, July 31, 2022
Friday, July 29, 2022
Thursday, July 28, 2022
28 July 2022 Thursday - building bridges
We cooked lunch in the office with Sam's help, the eating crew is getting bigger and there wasn't enough to eat. Arlene had to supplement with sandwiches, while the boys made pancakes. The vibe was very good, plenty of chit chat, I was pleased that the interns fitted in comfortably.
After the site inspection at PD (Sean's first) I grabbed to see the Thomian and spent an hour reminiscing - very satisfactory though we though earlier there wasn't enough time. I was desperate for a nap I was that tired... but I had to get ready for dinner with school mates who wanted to see Mike, who was back to house mom's ashes.
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| We will need a larger kitchen at the new office and new crockery. |
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| The apartments are topped out, waiting for the steel roof structure. |
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| All thought that RM 40 was great value for money. In our group, we have bankers and retirees, engineers and a builder, a hotel manager and a tour guides, there's a surveyor and a Grab driver, and one who works for a water company. I'm the only architect in our year, no one knows what Barry does but he drives a very expensive European sedan |
27 July 2022 Wednesday - moving day
I'm very looking forward to the move, I link this with several events; the recent registration of MWAA, Sean's coming back to work with us, and the recent spate of new work from new clients.
I'm also looking forward to having more interns now that we have more space.
Tuesday, July 26, 2022
24 July 2022 Sunday - Sean Chew
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| Sean in blue, with cap |
Sean was the catalyst for an invite to a bike ride from Mingi on Sunday morning. I suggested breakfast and chose to run to meet them instead.
It was a nice experience for several reasons - I hadn't run into town for breakfast in a while, it had been loops since I started running solo. I hadn't met up with Mingi and Suh Chee over a meal in a long time, surprising since we share many common interests; architecture, travel, food, their children. We were directors in the same company before. And thirdly, it was good to see Sean Chew again, to hear how he is settling down in Singapore. It was especially nice to have Freddie join the breakfast, he and Sean completed 3 generations of architects from DNA.
23 July 2022 Saturday Eijing
I'm already so busy, with urgent things not completed why would agree to look at new small projects? Such as Eijing's semi D renovation? I like designing houses, they seemed like a nice couple, this might lead to new work from their family business and most importantly, I can use this to train Sean.
So I was delighted that he agreed to our fees and ideas after meeting me this morning at the club.
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| The eventual scheme |
22 July 2022 Friday
A holiday but a normal working day for me. I spent the early morning thinking about things I have to do for work, and also at home - to prune the passion fruit, harvest the basil, to throw away the old running shoes, clean out the teak cabinet, and so forth.
It's been a while since i worked in the garden. It felt good, although I achieved only a small portion of my long list.
Later that evening, I met up with Richard Kirk over dinner with Leong, the Sias plus Johnson. They enjoyed his explanations about CLT and Glulam, and his scheme for the convention centre expansion. He had spent the past 2 days presenting it to government agencies, and my former boss; KH Wong.
Friday, July 22, 2022
Thursday, July 21, 2022
Saturday, July 16, 2022
16 July 2022 Saturday - the weekends are getting longer
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| It does not take much, I'm very happy that I got this pen to draw properly again. |
The weekends are getting longer; I have much more to do now and it is work that I am solely responsible for. As a son, taking care of mom on the weekend afternoons; mom is physically able and usually good company. She's able to occupy herself with watching YouTube videos and commenting on the people in the cafe dining room, while I try to do my work. It is a duty that takes me away from my gardening, my pottering about the house looking through art books and old photographs. This is why it was such a delight to get this fountain pen to work, seated at the dining table with the telly on, that I went to bed shortly after.
The doodling can wait till tomorrow.
Friday, July 15, 2022
15 July 2022 Friday - temple bridge
A nice way to end the week - a trip to Bau with Teck to see how we might renovate a temple on a hill overlooking the lake. Laurance was also invited along for the trip, which signalled to me that he was looking for immediate solutions to this little assignment.
So, that's what we did - a cable stay lookout structure which I thought might also frame the existing temple and provide a base for visitor centre facilities. I sketched the idea for the client's acceptance, for Laurance to give structural input and for Freddy to video.
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On the way downhill, there were additional structures to design; rest stations, a cliff staircase and a hotel/ service apartment.
The renovation of an existing temple requires the blessing of the gods, so accordingly the temple guardian was visited, consulted and his guidance sought. He picked a start date which was also Teck's birthday - the 21st of July 2022. Auspicious.
On the drive house, he confirmed that the Huising and Hupkee apartments are likely to proceed to planning submission stage. More good news.
Sometimes, we simply have to do our best and let the pieces fall in place, or fall into pieces. This morning, Leong's good friend from Singapore brought 2 investors from Shanghai and coincidentally Freddie was in the office to meet Peggy. He had the Mandarin to answer the investors' questions, while Leong and I struggled along. One of the benefits of good collaborations which Tech may have inadvertently summed up by saying that DNA had produced many capable architects, and that it was likely due to a good office culture. He was right; a culture of grooming and growing designers of calibre and conscience.
Thursday, July 14, 2022
14 July 2022 Thursday - detail therapy
I felt good after drawing these early in the morning, although I fluffed about for two hours before sitting down to draw. This is 45 minutes of work to record my conversation with Freddie yesterday evening. Something that I should do more often.
We used this to brief the builder on site later in the afternoon. It took longer than it should but the steel guy was trying to demonstrate his ability to understand our drawings, and not succeeding. My drawings must be clearer.
At lunch, we met Khai and his friends. Later he came over and asked if there was a vacancy in my office. Freddie offered him a job interview., and remarked that something interesting always happens when he and I meet up. We must do this more often.
13 July 2022 Wednesday - back home
This is a floor layout for our new office, I thought initially to sit at the corner offices, near Leong and Arlene but then thought that the architects can have these nicer spaces since they will need more layout space, and also spend more time in the office.
I plan to sit in the midst of the office, nearer the interns and closer to the centre of the floor. People can see me and come to talk to me. I need that.
12 July 2022 Tuesday- the long way home
On our final day in London, I felt that I have seen what I wanted to see and have said what I wanted to say. I felt ready for the end of the trip. Of course, there was plenty more to see and do - this is London after all.
But I was ready to get back home, to earn back the pounds spent and to lose the pounds gained.
On Monday evening, we ate a hot dinner by the roadside (it was really quite unlike London, off the pavement, under the trees, on a picnic table, served by the owner from China). And then we collected our luggage, and hailed a cab for Kings Cross Station. There we parted ways - they to catch an overnight bus to Amsterdam and we two for a night at the Heathrow Airport lounge.
9pm Monday. Heathrow Airport lounge
630 am Tuesday. Check in
10am Tuesday. Take off for Abu Dhabi.
6pm local time. Landed in Abu Dhabi, helped a Somalian woman disembark with her 3 kids (10, 5, 2) and 6 bags
11pm Tuesday Abu Dhabi to KL. Delayed departure, one hour.
11am Wednesday. Landed in KL.
2pm Wednesday. KL to Kuching.
340 pm Wednesday. Arrived home.
Tuesday, July 12, 2022
Sunday, July 10, 2022
Tuesday, July 5, 2022
4 July 2022 Monday - Aberdeen Art Gallery
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| Image courtesy of Hoskins Architects |
We did not do much research about Aberdeen before travelling there. We had never been and figured that everything would be new and a 'discovery' provided we did some exploring. After a big lunch with Fiona and Noel, and still talking about the surprise of a jeep to Sara - we wandered past the Marischal College (the biggest granite building in Aberdeen) onto Schoolhill. We were just remarking how grey the streetscape was when we happened upon the entrance to the Aberdeen Art Gallery.
The central atrium has been 'lifted' up by an additional floor, creating a lofty sunlit space. The additions are expressed as separate elements, the staircase connecting all the atrium floors inserted into the existing structure like dark timber origami.
At the top most floor, there is a door leading to the roof terrace carved out by a good in the new ribbed copper facade.
Next to this door was a small poster, telling us about the architect for this refurbishment - Gareth Hoskins. He set up Hoskins Architects in Glasgow in 1998 and won UK Architect of the Year in 2006 and Scottish Architect of the Year in 2009.
He died in 2016, he was 48.
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| The entry was formerly the sculpture courtyard, with a circular skylight. This has been extended by one storey. |
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| A new square skylight framed with a circular occulus below to follow the atrium circular plan. |
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| The topmost floor opens to a roof terrace, which offers views of the neighbourhood. |
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| McBey |
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| The staircase connecting all the atrium floors inserted into the existing structure like dark timber origami. |
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