LOOKING IN: Recent Developments in Architecture in Indonesia
lecture by Dr. Muhammad Thamrin

Date: Wednesday, 12 July 2017, 16.00-17.30
Organized by Heritage Hands-on and Indonesia Diaspora Task Force Liveable Cities

Venue: Dutch Culture, Herengracht 474, 1017CA Amsterdam 

Summary:
Tropical architecture is unique and had been creatively interpreted during the colonial era by the Dutch architects. Henri Maclaine Pont and Thomas Karsten are two from many Dutch architects who have shown exemplary works how beauty and nature are able to accommodate form and function through buildings such as the campus of Institute of Technology of Bandung and the (not so long time ago burned) Pasar Johar in Semarang.

After the Independence, Indonesia produces many architects through architecture education institutions that pioneered by the Dutch. Now 72 years later it would be interesting to trace architecture development in the country. It would be exciting to see how native Indonesians define tropical architecture from their own angles. We are also curious how architects involve in rapid development of the country.

As Indonesian cities and villages are desperately grappling with development pressure, environmental degradation and failure of planning, post-independence; architecture profession is largely absent from advancing sustainable agenda or worse: mperpetuating development models that has taken us to our current deplorable state. Architecture in Indonesia has largely failed to make impact beyond individual buildings – except for a few and far between.

Dr. Muhammad Thamrin
Muhammad Thamrin is an insider at Indonesian architecture profession with 25 years’ experience. He holds B. Arch from Institute Technology Bandung, Indonesia and MBA of University of Hawaii at Manoa.