Confession

Forgive me, Father for it has been one month since my last blog entry...

I have been so busy with all my duties and obligations in the past month, that I had to make a list of my 'to-do' lists. Jokes aside - I have done just that, listing things that are not related to work or duties, but are important because they nourish me. This list remind me to set aside some minutes to sketch and paint, tend to the garden, to read and to continue my carpenter projects. So, here is some of last month's duties in a pictorial format.

1. Painting
 I found an old sketch of this spiral stairs - I drew it one Sunday afternoon years ago and decided to revive it with watercolors between dinner time and bed-time at the end of a particularly busy day at work.

Padungan Road back lane

2. Drawing
I am working on the design of a house which is the extension of an existing house that we designed several years ago. The link between the new and existing house is through a gallery space or a 'ruai' after the 'street' or corridor space in an Iban longhouse.

the 'ruai' is shown in orange

using the notion of served and servant spaces - Louis would have approved

the different entities of the house is unified by a roof that turns into a wall

Initial sketch of the 'ruai'

Sketch up version - the space alludes to the old streets in Chinatown

3. Writing
This is my last term as editor, next March someone else takes over. I enjoy the writing and compilation of varying tropics into a theme for each issue. But when the date lines clash - it is pressure that I do not need. I think it is a good idea to step aside and let someone else try their hand at this. It is important to have change - both for the newsletter and for me.
You can get a copy of the newsletter on-line at pamsc.org.my

Timber 'Blinds"

If I were a bread maker, I would want to make it from scratch and not resort to easier shortcuts. Likewise, in the building of the pavilion - it would have been ideal if I had been able to build the entire structure myself. That would have meant taking months off from work, which we can ill-afford. So, my understanding contractors have resisted completing the project and retained some work for me to complete. There remains openings to be closed, the entrance ramp to be built and windows for the bathroom and that is only for the building's exterior. Internally, there are shelves, light pelmets, wash basin counter, the list seems end-less.

But first things first, the exterior shell has to be completed. Initial ideas included the construction of a shiplapped weatherboard panels but these are not open-able. Then I thought of making the ship-lapped pieces open like awning windows which would work.
I eventually settled on making these shutters (or more correctly blinds as Tao puts it) vertical as the adjustable glass louvres are installed similarly. The timber was bought earlier from a contractor when he dismantled some government quarters; they were good hardwood, split in some parts and painted in gaudy colours but dry as evidenced by the 'ringing' when sawn.
These took me a few weekends to complete and I have yet to seal them before installing them; the workmanship is dubious but the client is quite understanding, as I told Kok Ming who gave me an idea of connecting the blinds together to open and shut in concert.

trimming and sanding to remove years of over-painting

The 'box-frame' will fit within the brick wall openings, the 'blinds' are de-mountable.

thumbnail sketches of the pavillion