Design 3 Studio develops the students’ design responsiveness or the design sensitivity. Students explore ‘ways of seeing’, understanding and interpreting how architecture concentrates and conveys natural, cultural, social and contextual forces through means specific to the discipline of the unit. In addition, the design program articulates the unique reality of architecture through the study of basic inter-relationships of brief, site, material, technology and construction.

There will be three projects for this course, namely: Project 1 – Vernacular Vibes: Façade Facelift, Project 2A - Infill Insight: Site Analysis, and Project 2B - Designing a Community Hub: Commercial Lot. Project 1 focuses on the redesign of a shop lot façade, requiring rejuvenation and a touch of vernacular design. Next, Project 2A serves as a preliminary site analysis for the subsequent individual project, Project 2B. Project 2B involves the design of a community building in the form of a shop lot, intended to function as either a commercial business hub or an educational learning centre. Students will derive their designs from the site analysis and the specific project objectives meant to be emphasized within their proposals. To interlace this course with experiential learning, SBEA2138 Design 3 had organized study trip to several places in Malacca that intended to offer a unique experience to equipped students with more architectural knowledge to kick start their semester. This trip serves as both a case study visit and a site visit, offering valuable insights that will benefit every project outlined in this course.

Accordingly, students learn to express and then develop an idea for an architectural proposition critically and appropriately, through their own perception and translate into workable scheme. Design parameter shall be space making and place making depending on the requirement of projects.

Course integration:

SBEA2713 Environmental Science and Sustainability

SBEA2523 Theory of Design

This excursion is designed to provide Y2 students with firsthand experience and knowledge of two specific sites related to all three of our projects for this semester

1. Project 1 – Vernacular Vibes: Façade Facelift

2. Project 2A – Infill Insight: Site Analysis

3. Project 2B – Designing a Community Hub: Commercial Lot

It is a unique opportunity to immerse students in the real-world context of architectural design and gain insights that will be invaluable in their academic pursuits and future careers.