Seeking back my wild spirit for finals // sem 2 of degree.

24th April 2022, Sunday - prepping for the very 1st crit of semester 2 tomorrow (Monday) and I hate my concept - like it can be better, I was hoping for comments that can help me develop my design but my lecturer seemed to just love everything. He only said "yes" when I explained 2 design concepts and contrary to any of my acceptance of approval before this, I am quite lost; getting thirstier for instructions. And yep, I am still here, having my face glued on the lappy screen, writing my own thoughts on blog while doing and reading some research about the similarities between the European housing because -----

Okay this is the story, we are given a site, and we are to interview a client based on professions & themes the faculty has assigned us - My site is located at the coconut orchard, with a very old-fashioned lifestyle happening in the community there, the existence of a traditional Malay house, nipah-made homestays, and chicken coop as the contexts. I am to do a getaway (uzlah) themed 150sqm retreat house for an entrepreneur. So, looking back from my previous final project of semester 1, I really, really, really love to blend my design with the context; where aspiration to get inspiration from the site or location will be my very 1st priority, with finishing touches of the project will be implemented from the clients' characteristics, personalities., comes number 2. 

Since my site is the coconut orchard, I aspire to take inspiration from the coconut tree or the coconut itself. Hence, I come up with coconut leaves inspired floor plan - where my client loves to not be alone during her getaway, so I have imagined of a walkway as datum, holding lots of spaces and rooms for my client to interact with her families and her customers. 

the process of converting the coconut leaves into my design.

However on the other hand, I am also blessed with the coconut fruit, the inner of the coconut; the dense flesh of the coconut, gated the empty space with an embryo at the center- gave me an idea to create a floor plan that'll most likely look like a donut, a rigid structure of living space with a courtyard in the middle, for my client said that she loves nature and to dissolve with the scenery, but she still wants the privacy. Thus, this will be it. 

how I implement the inner of the coconut into the spatial relationship 

(bridging outside into the inside).

Talking about the contexts, I am planning to have my retreat house a twist of Malay traditional form with simple contemporary design. This is in order to respect the site and the people who lives around there, as well to fulfill the client's personality that she is such a big picture person. So I am currently visualizing that the retreat house will be built on stilts, going to have an elevated verandah (serambi), might have a semi-pitched roof (Cuz I don't want the house to look the same like others who live near the site), with modern elements inside the main Malay floor plan. 

the rough traditional Malay house floor plan layout. 

I know, you might think that my job is nearly done for this first crit, but man a menace of problems is happening right now in my mind regarding my design concepts, 

Coconut leaves inspired floor plan:

1. The floor plan is nearly look like the Turkish apartment floor plan.

Inner coconut inspired floor plan:

1. How can I integrate the Malay style with such pop-up middle-eastern feature?

Actually there are dozens of question to be pasted here but let's not talk about it for I am starting to digest one by one hahahahahaha feeling pity to myself for asking stupid questions yet I am the one who needs to think of the solutions. (;-;) I think that's all for today's ranting. Gonna call my mom and ask for her opinions - I'm not sure about others but my mom really mean a world to me, nothing she cannot fix including my lovey dovey episodes in university hahahhaha legit she knows everything! 

Ramadan 22.