ARCH5110/6110A
Advanced Architectural Design Studio I & II – Vessel of Spectacle
Target Students MArch1, MArch2
Course Term 1 & 2
Course Type Required
Venue Studio
Teacher(s) CHAN, Chi Yan / MINGUEZ, Juan / NG, Betty
Horse racing is one of the most ancient of sports. In Rome, we see the architectural remnants of this spectator sport in many forms – from the architectural ruins of the Colosseum to today’s open park space of the Circus Maximus to the public open square of Piazza Navona, which was built on the site of an ancient stadium. These spaces of spectacle were a symbol of a city’s prosperity, built as status, built to entertain and built to last. As a result of their scale, openness and urban context, they were often reappropriated in different ways after their heyday as a sports stadium. Today, as the popularity of this equestrian sport continues, we see different variations of racecourses around the world. What do these historical and modern spaces of spectacle mean to the citizens of their time? How have they fared and evolved through the history of the city?
The Happy Valley Racecourse was built by the British in 1845 in a flat area then considered a swampland. The outline of the racecourse is uncharacteristically asymmetrical, likely having been shaped by the natural terrain. What began around it as a rural landscape has urbanized rapidly. Today, the Racecourse is bordered on all sides by a multitude of programs – private recreational clubs to the north, the Hong Kong Cemetery (also founded in 1845) and an elevated highway to its west, a hospital (Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital) to its south, a secondary school and several rows of high-valued residential real estate to the east. What are the other qualities of its particular geographic location historically and in today’s urban context of Hong Kong?
Programmatically, the Happy Valley Racecourse is a fascinating study of mixed uses. During the night of the race, the city, made up of spectators from every income level, gathers in and around the grandstand. The architecture of this grandstand has evolved throughout the years to feature an ever-dizzying sectional mix of viewing stands, restaurants, and VIP dining and viewing facilities. During the rest of the week, its open grounds within have been transformed into public recreational grounds, featuring a variety of different sized sports pitches. In recent years, the grounds have been given another purpose. An underground stormwater tank was constructed below the recreation grounds under the Happy Valley Underground Stormwater Drainage Scheme, transforming the racecourse’s subterranean grounds into an important part of the city’s drainage infrastructure.
This mix of architecture, landscape and infrastructure has agglomerated in a piecemeal manner with renovations upon renovations. In addition to its history and context, students are to research, analyze and diagram this particular programmatic mix. What sort of architectural identity does the grandstand have and can we speculate on other ways the programs can be reorganized, layered or intermixed? What is the relationship between the open recreation grounds and subterranean water tank below and are there further opportunities to be seized architecturally by this relationship? Finally, they are to consider what a space of spectacle means to us today in the context of our urban setting.
