This week's instalment of Project of the Week interior design series features a museum design by 2021 SBID Awards Finalist, Huidrom Design Studio.
Imphal Peace Museum is dedicated to the indomitable human spirit which was so abundantly evident in the Manipur manner, as what can only be described as an epochal catastrophe, emerged. These spectacular hills and valleys are no stranger to violence but they had never before seen violence of such industrial-scale as WWII brought to their doorsteps. Though fought on their soil, the Manipuris always knew it was not their war, therefore had no enemies. In the true humanistic tradition the Manipuris, amidst their own misery, harboured no bitterness against any of the warring sides and extended humanitarian help to any soldier in need. This Museum is a Chronicle of the Heroism of the ordinary Manipuris.
This is a 6500 sqft. gallery where WWII archaeological finds are allotted appropriate contextual spaces in the narrative of a cataclysmic historical trajectory Manipur found itself in because of a peculiar turn of the geopolitics of the period. These artefacts from the past are reconnected to the activities which once gave them meaning, by materially and symbolically remaking the world they came from.
SBID Awards Category: Public Space Design sponsored by Sans Souci
Practice: Huidrom Design Studio
Project: Imphal Peace Museum
Location: Manipur, India
We received a detailed project brief with a reference museum being Haebaru Town Museum in Japan. The display space of the museum was supposed to be divided broadly into two equal sections. The first showing the intensity of the war. The second, which is further divided into two sub-sections (“post-war” and “life & culture”), representing the resilience of these hills and valleys, and the people who made them their homes.
The design took into consideration numerous factors such as functionality, scientific rigour, economic concerns, authenticity, and, above all, it was inspired by the collective character of the people of the state.
Our aim in this project was to leverage the material qualities and cultural connotations of wood, to achieve an orderly logic and authenticity, and thus harmonise design, nature and culture.
The highlight of this project was playing with natural textures in the design of the space. Some of them include the entrance wall where rice straw and mud clay are blended, and the exposes patterns of unpolished wood. Another great example of this is a bamboo bridge in a passageway.
Recognition. As the Imphal Peace Museum (IPM) exhibits continue to develop over time, there is hope that the museum itself will serve as a lasting symbol of peace and reconciliation. IPM is a building with local sensibility and stands as a Symbol of Reconciliation after WWII. So, winning or being shortlisted for the SBID Awards would show acknowledgement of all our hard work.
Questions answered by Suresh Huidrom, Senior Designer, Huidrom Design Studio.
We hope you feel inspired by this week's design!
If you missed the last instalment of Project of the Week, featuring a design that hosts both an office and a party venue under one roof, created by Teodora Panayotova and Max Baklayan, click here to see more.
This week's instalment of the #SBIDinspire interior design series features a sky-high commercial property defined by sustainability, energy-saving capability and its modern design. The underground avenue in B2 is about 370 metres long and 15 metres wide and acts as a walkway connecting three skyscrapers. The Shanghai Tower is located on levels 2-5, serving several commercial functions which includes acting as a venue for international conventions, a centre for fashion-related activities, a venue for wedding celebrations as well as an exhibition/show space. The 5th level includes a ballroom seating 500 guests, four multi-function meeting rooms, a business club, a VIP room, a garden bar and an outdoor garden. Despite having different functions and appealing to different audiences, the design of this project harmoniously blends culture and business demands while embodying the spirit of the skyscraper: sky-high, incisive and supreme.
Company: Gold Mantis Construction Decoration Co
Project: Shanghai Tower Meeting Centre and B2 Public Underground
Project Location: Shanghai, China
What was the client's brief?
The owner of Shanghai Tower is Shanghai Tower Construction and Development Co, which is jointly funded by Shanghai Urban Construction Investment and Development Corporation, Shanghai Lujiazui Finance and Trade Zone Development Co, and Shanghai Construction Engineering (Group) Corporation. With the enterprise spirit of 'passion, harmony, innovation and pragmatism', the company pursues the construction and development goals of the highest quality, supreme design and precise detail, which integrates multi-party wisdom and resources, and strives to create a concept of humanity and the future with green, sustainable decision-making defining this vertical city.
What inspired the interior design of the project?
Shanghai Tower is a super high-rise landmark building with outstanding popularity and excellent geographical advantages. Meanwhile, it is also a skyscraper full of cultural atmosphere, using a variety of cultural forms to show the international character of the building. Moreover, the design concept of 'Nature, Humanity, and Future' for the building itself is an exciting point to stimulate our project design.
With the city of Shanghai being energised by water, the layout of the whole city follows the meander Huangpu River, generating an organic, geographical flow. The culture of the city therefore changed with the city's layout, giving it containment. Therefore the main element of the interior design is naturally inspired from Huangpu River: for instance, blue terrazzo flooring which extends gradually in B2 avenue and the blue ripple pattern carpet flooring in ball hall etc. The elements of 'River' and 'water' are conveyed directly through the design.
The interior design also reflects the facade of the architecture: the form of Shanghai Tower is rotating 120 degrees, standing at Lujiazui financial district. The concept of 'rotation' is not only showing dynamic form in physics, it also reveals lots of embedded cultural meanings behind the design we implemented; it showcases the continued eternal flow which stands in the sky space overlooking the city. These forms reflect the spirit of architecture as rotation, filament lines, rhythm, and they contribute to the main style of the space.
What was the toughest hurdle your team overcame during the project?
The Shanghai Tower is a complex building with complex functions. Our design needed to overcome many unknown technical problems. The design area we were involved in uses a large number of curves and shaped modelling, and these modellings must take into account indoor physical space, building structure, electro-mechanical equipment, curtain walls, etc. Therefore, the most difficult obstacle we overcame was the accurate realisation of shaped surface modelling.
What was your team’s highlight of the project?
The highlight of this project was that our design concept incorporates regional culture, with the theme of Huangpu River, using dynamic curve modelling: such as the streamlined blue terrazzo splicing ground in the B2 public underground avenue, the rolling wave-shaped aluminium round tube wall of 5F banquet hall, water ripple effect blue carpet of the banquet hall floor and so on. Seeing this fluid, river-inspired concept translated effectively into the psychical design is a great achievement for us.
Why did you enter the SBID International Design Awards?
The SBID International Design Awards, with its considerable attention in terms of international awards, have firmly established its position and specifications in the industry as one of the most prestigious design events. Winning the SBID International Design Award would be a great achievement and honour for designers.
Questions answered by Miaoyi Jiang, Company Executive Manager at Gold Mantis
If you missed last week's Project of the Week featuring a project with complex, architectural elements to create multi-dimensional spaces and structural intricacy, click here to see more.
We hope you feel inspired! Let us know what inspired you #SBIDinspire
Gold Mantis Construction Decoration Co | SBID International Design Awards 2018
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