MSB 2.0

Related Staff : Fai Au

Students: Chan Lok Yan (Alison), Chang Yin CHing (Mini), Cheung Tsz Kiu Jackie, Hong Sum Ho (Angus), Hui Yui Gi Catherine, Kim Eunsoo, Lai See Long (Christopher), Lee Nip Man Mandy, Leung Hiu Lam, Pak Hei Nam, Wang Zi Yuan

Studio Brief

Course Description

This studio challenges students to observe, analyze and speculate the past, present and future of municipal service building (MSB), a unique building type in Hong Kong which vertically accommodates a diverse mix of public programs often including wet market, performance venue, library, recreational facilities and hot food center. For the recent years the role of these MSB in Hong Kong has been diminishing as various new forms and operations of public and commercial programs emerge to cater for the changing need of the community.  Apparently the government has stopped developing this building type for more than a decade.

Stage 1 of the project consists of the study on existing MSB buildings which are categorized with three specific site conditions: i) Edge/Island; ii) Sectional/Mountain; iii) Inner/Dense. Students in group of three or four are required to conduct their investigations on the issues of urban context, structure, circulation and programs of the existing MSB.  The research outcome of stage 1 forms the basis for the individual design task at stage 2 – a ground-up building of maximum 5000 square meters to replace the existing MSB. Students are expected to reinterpret and transform this building type and speculate the future role of civic building at large.

The expected learning outcome of this studio is:

• To understand design as an ongoing process, not as a product;
• To develop an ability to use the technical tools associated with contemporary architectural practice;
• To examine, appreciate and challenge traditional design and thinking processes;
• To develop and propose new ways of representing architectural concepts verbally, textually, sonically and graphically.