URBAN LIVING ROOM: BACK TO LIVING

IDEA CAME FROM

George Town is experiencing a growing contradiction — more people are coming to experience the city, while fewer local people remain to live in it. The decline of the local population, alongside the rapid growth of tourism, raises a fundamental question about the future of the heritage core:

PEOPLE COME TO VISIT — BUT DO PEOPLE STILL LIVE HERE?

CONCEPT MODEL

The concept model explores the building as a small representation of Penang city, bringing together different aspects of its everyday lifestyle within a single architectural environment. The trishaw ramp acts as a continuous connector between the different clusters of 衣、食、住、行, allowing people to move through and experience the diverse layers of Penang’s living heritage. Rather than treating the building as a series of isolated spaces, the clusters are connected through movement, creating opportunities for encounter, observation and participation. As people travel along the ramp, they gradually experience different aspects of the city — from food and craft to living and movement — creating a condensed experience of Penang within the building. In this way, the building becomes a small Penang city, transforming movement from simply passing through into an opportunity to live, experience and reconnect with the everyday culture of Penang. This responds to the question: Leave or Live?

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CONCEPT MODEL-----THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE TRISHAW RAMP AND THE EACH CLUSTERS

MODEL DESIGN PROGRESS

The model development is driven by the growing contrast between declining local life and increasing tourism in George Town, raising the question: “Leave or Live?” In response, the project explores the idea of creating a “small past Penang city” — a condensed environment that brings together the everyday spaces, activities and cultural experiences that once shaped the city’s living heritage. Rather than treating heritage as something to simply observe, the building is organised to encourage people to move, stay, interact and participate in everyday Penang life.

The trishaw ramp becomes the main spatial connector, continuously linking the different programme clusters of 衣、食、住、行, while creating opportunities for encounters along the journey. As the ramp moves through the building, circulation is transformed into an experience of the city, connecting spaces such as food, clothing, living, movement and leisure. The clusters are arranged as interconnected fragments of the old Penang urban fabric, reflecting the relationships between streets, shophouses, courtyards, marketplaces and community spaces. Through this progression, the model shifts from a building that people simply pass through or visit into a miniature living city where people can pause, experience, interact and reconnect with Penang’s living heritage.

INTERIM (FLOOR PLANS)

FINAL OUTCOME

DPSJ

BOARD SLIDE

FINAL DESIGN REPORT