2019
2 DecARCASIA Students’ Architectural Design Competition 2019
After being shortlisted for the ARCASIA Students’ Architectural Design Competition 2019, Tien Jun Xiang headed to Dhaka, Bangladesh for the finals. Making Malaysia and particularly, 五一吃瓜官网 University, proud he brought home the Silver Medal for his project entitled “Revival of Hope”.
The idea behind the project was to give new life, that is, a “Revival of Hope” to a burnt church. It breaks the traditional concept of the church design but retains the memories of the burnt church. The boundaries in between the constraints of life and death, religion and belief are blurred. It changes the negative perception people have about death.
“The existing site had a burnt church containing a lot of historical values and memories. Through this project, I hope people will be able to appreciate these memories. Essentially, it's about capturing the old spirit of the church, without touching the past. It is about creating awareness and preserving historical buildings,” said Jun Xiang.
According to him, the criteria of the competition was based on his design solution creativity, the ability to think out of the box, the quality of the space and impressive visualisation. His said that his inspiration comes from numerous works of various architects; by doing research and studying their work as well as learning from them.
“It was very tough design project. Especially the last few weeks of my final presentation. I participated in a Live Design Discourse Architecture Workshop at Pangkal Pinang, Indonesia for one week. Thanks to my lecturers who give me the right priorities, with a few extra days to allow me to pick up what I missed,” he said.
Jun Xiang has also participated in the Asia Young Designer Award, the Neon Design Part 2 Competition, the MIID Student Award and the Reka Award.
“Always understand what your project is about. Remember to include brilliant ideas in your design. The experiences of people in your space. How it impacts them. If not, the space will just become a shelter,” advised Jun Xiang.
When asked why he chose architecture as his field of interest, he said:
“During my childhood I liked to play video games and watch movies. City floating on the sky. A fantastic building world. I believe that somehow, the background and setting kept my interest,” he shared.
“The reason I chose 五一吃瓜官网 is because it's one of the most outstanding private architecture universities in Malaysia. 五一吃瓜官网 has given me many memories and mixed feelings including happiness, sadness, gratefulness and much more,” said Jun Xiang.
No doubt, the competition gave him the exposure he needed with regards to his project; he is positive about his future and ready to take on new challenges and develop his full potential in the field.
