Joseph LIM (Dr)

KENNETH F. BROWN ASIA PACIFIC ARCHITECTURE AWARD, HONORABLE MENTION IN THIS EXPERIMENT WITH SPACE, LIGHT AND SHADOW, THE CROWNS OF THE TREE SET THE POSITIONS OF TIMBER DECKS AND ITS BRANCHES DETERMINED OPENINGS IN THE TRANSPARENT SCREENS THROUGH WHICH THEY PENETRATED FOR USERS TO CLIMB OUT. THE LOWER TWO LEVELS WERE DARK AND FORBIDDING IN MOOD AND THEY CONTRASTED WITH THE LOOKOUT LEVEL WHERE LIGHT FILTERED THROUGH THE CROWN OF THE TEMBUSU. THE DESIGN PROCESS WAS COMPLEX AS DRAWINGS OF THE TREE COULD NOT BE SUFFICIENTLY ACCURATE TO START A DESIGN ON PAPER. THIS GAP BETWEEN REPRESENTATION AND REALITY WAS BRIDGED BY SETTING OUT ALIGNMENTS OF TIMBER ELEMENTS ON SITE AND THEN OSCILLATING BETWEEN FREEHAND SKETCHES, SETTING MARKERS AND SCALED DRAWINGS.

THREE EXPLORATIONS IN NEW HYBRID INTERIORS BUILT AT THE NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SINGAPORE, WITH BUILT-IN ELEMENTS AND SLIDING SCREENS TO RECOMPOSE SPACE IN FLOOR AREAS OF ABOUT 160 SQUARE METERS

URA SOUTHERN RIDGES BRIDGE INTERNATIONAL DESIGN COMPETITION, MERIT AWARD TEAM: JOSEPH LIM, CHIK & YEO ARCHITECTS, ARUP A BRIDGE WITH MANY CHARACTERS. IN DAYLIGHT IT IS A FALLEN LOG WITH BRANCHES LEADING TO EXISTING PATHWAYS ON A HILLY SITE. AT NIGHT, IT IS A SERPENT CROSSING THE VALLEY. THE TIMBER SLITS PART AT KEY POSITIONS FOR USERS TO VIEW SKYLINES ALONG DIFFERENT STAGES OF THEIR JOURNEY. THE BRIDGE STRUCTURE HOLDS AN ELONGATED TRELLIS FOR VINES AND CLIMBERS TO GROW. A LONG, HANGING GARDEN EXPERIENCED INSIDE A SINGLE BRIDGE CROSSING ATTRACTING LITTLE BIRDS, SQUIRRELS AND INSECTS.

APPOINTED ARCHITECT BY MERCY RELIEF SINGAPORE INSTITUTE FOR ADVANCED ARCHITECTURE OF CATALONIA AWARD, HONORABLE MENTION THE REBUILDING OF DISASTER-TORN COMMUNITIES WHEN POORLY CONSIDERED MAY RESULT IN THE PERPETUATION OF EXISTING PROBLEMS CREATED BY MISTAKES IN PLANNING. THE PROVISION OF SHELTER IS NOT ENOUGH WHEN IT IS CONSIDERED AS A STAND-ALONE SOLUTION. REBUILDING MUST BE CONSIDERED IN TERMS OF CONTINUED RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN LIVELIHOODS, ENVIRONMENT AND INFRASTRUCTURE IN WAYS WHICH PRESERVE TRADITION AND CULTURE WITHOUT HINDERING PROGRESS OR FURTHER DAMAGING THE ENVIRONMENT.

MND FUNDED RESEARCH PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: JOSEPH LIM COLLABORATORS: NUS, GM2000 AND HOPETECHNIK THIS PROTOTYPE IS A KINEMATIC TRANSLATION OF A MOMOTANI FOLD. THE KINETIC SCREEN IS ADAPTABLE TO SUN PATHS AND BUILDING FACADE ORIENTATION IN ORDER TO RESPOND TO CHANGING CONDITIONS OF BRIGHTNESS AND SOLAR GAINS. THE SCREEN OVERCOMES THESE CONTRADICTING REQUIREMENTS BY CHANGING ITS SURFACE DEPTH AND POROSITY THROUGH KINEMATIC FORMATIONS WHICH CAN VARY ITS X, Y AND Z POSITIONS. THE SCREEN IS RATIONALISED INTO CLUSTERS OF SATELLITES, ENABLING DYNAMIC FORMATIONS. THIS MECHANICAL ASSEMBLY MAY BE CONTROLLED BY A VIDEO CAMERA ADJUSTING THE PANEL POSITIONS TO CAST A MAXIMUM SHADOW (SHADE), DEPENDING ON SUN POSITIONS.

THE BOOK DOCUMENTS THE MORPHOLOGICAL STRATEGIES OF BIOLOGICAL STRUCTURES FOUND IN SEASHELLS, CORALS, PLANTS AND ANIMALS AS A BASIS FOR SPATIAL TRANSLATION. THE GEOMETRIES THAT GIVE BIOLOGICAL FORMS STRENGTH, MOVEMENT, FIRMNESS AND FLEXIBILITY ARE STUDIED, AND ILLUSTRATED IN DESIGN EXPERIMENTS TO EXPLORE SPACE WITH STRUCTURAL ANALOGUES. PHYSICAL MODELS AND DRAWINGS WERE USED IN EXPERIMENTAL PROCESSES AS A MODE OF INQUIRY.