Kajang Art Centre for a Displaced City

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Academic Project

Architecture BSc, Year 3

Kajang is located within the Hulu Langat District in the state of Selangor, Malaysia. The centre of Kajang is its old town where it is populated by the Malay, Chinese, Indian and other ethnic groups. Apart from that, the urban blocks along the historic streets of the old town are also fragmented and built in different periods of time due to the evolution, hegemony of private sectors and fire accidents.

The project addresses the urban issue of being a city that is displaced in its spatial character and social quality. Locals have been displaced by immigrants, streets as public spaces have been displaced by cars, traditional businesses have been displaced by contemporary service based businesses, walkable and cycle routes have been fragmented by new developments, throughout the years.

Kajang Art Centre is a response to, the issue of a displaced city by offering an urban intervention that identifies the distinctiveness of place without disrupting its locale character. Furthermore, it is envisioned as an urban node within the old town of Kajang to connect and empower the urban communities through learning the performing arts, on dance and music.