Project Finale I

| The Semenyih Funerary Center & Plant Nursery

The theme for my Architectural Studio 4 throughout the semester revolved around the ideas of death and memories. For my final project, I was required to design a funerary center in Semenyih, Selangor of about 1500 sqm. which would also accommodate a complimentary facility which shares spaces and rituals with the funerary home and must be somewhat co-dependent with one another while being economically self-sustaining on its own.

My proposal for the complimentary facility was a plant nursery. Plants obviously play an important role in all funerary rituals and the relationship between a plant nursery and a funerary center would make perfect sense. The funerary center exists on its own, holding wakes and other funeral related rituals including a columbarium whilst the plant nursery provides flowers and plants during those rituals, renders services to the site in the form of landscaping and can also exist on its own for the sole purpose of selling plants.

Thus, my proposal centers around the ideas of plant life as a counter balance to death.

| The plant nursery consists of cores which cut through the building and form courtyards with timber strips which rise high above to give that sense of void and loss. Each void caters to a specific plant family.



| The ceremonial hall where funerary rituals take place is set against the serenity of waterplants in one of the nursery cores.



| I turned the typical columbarium and interpreted it as a garden. The place where a loved one is interred is made into a thriving landscape where people can come to converse, have a moment and perhaps come to terms with their loss.



| The staircase leading up to the topmost floor, an eatery. On the right as another plant nursery cores, dedicated to bamboo.



| The eatery at the top floor with views out into the surrounding lush landscape and hills of Semenyih and beyond.



| My hand made 1:200 scale model.



| A close up shot.

It may have been incredibly stressful to do all this work, but I'm very happy with the outcome. Of course, I do acknowledge that tremendous improvements could have been done, but that is always the case. You can just never stop designing because perfection could never be achieved.

| My pin-up and presentation spot. My boards are the three panels on the bottom half.

I shall upload my presentation boards soon.

Stay tuned.