Re-Defining Courtyard to Re-Vitalize Urban Community

Transcription

1 UIA 2017 Seoul World Architects Congress P Re-Defining Courtyard to Re-Vitalize Urban Community Rahman Rabeya * 1 1 Post-graduate student, MA in Development and Emergency Practice, CENDEP, Oxford Brookes, UK 2 Development Practitioner and Teaching Assistant (previous) at Department of Architecture, BRAC University, Bangladesh Abstract Cities have attracted people for centuries. As it connects communities, markets the city gradually develops a character and vibrancy. However, the downside of city growth is that it has bad effects on the quality of life and environment. Dhaka city, a home to over 17 million people has undergone such phenomenon. Rising population and increasing housing demand have spurted the multi-storied apartment culture in Dhaka sharply. These modern apartments are inhabited by people of different socio-cultural backgrounds and values. Neighbors are becoming strangers and social degradation is occurring silently and continuously. The city is losing its life but all is not lost. The urban life in recent times is very much complex but still the way of life of urban dwellers owes much to their rural origin which is evident in their use of space. Much as the modern way of life needs to be understood it is equally important to comprehend the very space that has undergone transformation from the beginning of urbanization till now, which is the rural courtyard. Although vanishing, the courtyard is simply part of a larger process of change and the time has come to revive its values in the urban context, to revitalize the city. Keywords: Courtyard, Court, transformation, urbanization, revitalization 1. Introduction Dhaka city has undergone rapid urbanization due to various urban forces generated at different times and phases. It is a home to over 17 million people and recently the city boundary has expanded to take in wider metropolitan area [1]. The population is growing by an estimated 4.2% per year, one of the highest rates amongst the Asian cities [2]. The continuing growth reflects ongoing migration from rural areas to the Dhaka urban region as it creates new occupation. Thus by 2020, the megacity s population is expected to rise to 20million people [1]. During this time and still the society as a whole is undergoing major structural changes. Rising population and increasing housing demand have played an important role in shaping up the urban residences. Thus, multi-storied apartment culture has grown up in Dhaka sharply. These modern apartments inhabited by people of different socio-cultural backgrounds and values. The new life style and living pattern in cities came to be recognized as urban, modern, and formal as opposed to rural, traditional and informal. The changes found expression in the physical form of building and city design. Still many of the * Contact Author: Rabeya Rahman, Post-graduate student, CENDEP, Oxford Brookes, UK. Headington Campus Gipsy Lane, Oxford OX3 0BP UK Tel: rabeyabu@hotmail.com (The publisher will insert here: received, accepted) UIA 2017 Seoul World Architects Congress 1

2 traditional attitudes towards the organization of space have remained unchanged in the urban setting. Here lies the clue to solving the problem. Much as the modern way of life needs to be understood it is equally important to mention that the very space that has undergone transformation from the beginning of urbanization till now, is the rural courtyard. Although vanishing, the courtyard is simply part of a larger process of change and the time has come to revive its values in the urban context. Understanding the essence of courtyard could be the key to revitalizing the city. This paper attempts to make a conspicuous comprehension about the rural way of life and traditional architecture of the country in order to arrive at the basis to formulate the design approach for the contemporary urban house. 2. Objectives The reason for which courtyard has once evolved has lost its essence in the urbanized Dhaka. A research is therefore essential to investigate this situation and find out whether this deeply-rooted, widely prevalent (once) archetype will disappear so easily or whether the courtyard will persist in some other form, under a different name in the future. It is this thought that forms the basis of this research. This study aims to address the above research problems and find out possible ways to overcome the problems for the developments of architecture and to improve our lives. 3. Methods The study will focus on the socio-cultural and physical aspect of rural courtyard and urban court, through literature review. The purpose is to understand the courtyard architecture in the rural context and the reasons why it is still considered to be a popular entity unlike in the urban context. Therefore, different characteristics of courtyard and court will be analyzed and ultimately an attempt will be made to propose some design ideas in order to enhance the organization of urban residential spaces we see today. 4. Rural House Form: Land, trees, water are the abstract ingredients from which the main theme or essence of rural architecture takes shape. Practical climatic considerations like the sun and rain protection, use of light etc. have influenced the design of dwellings. However, it is the life style of the people- the social customs, the degree of privacy etc. that ultimately determine the basic organization of the rural dwellings. The rural homesteads are situated generally on slightly raised ground, which maintain a horizontal relationship with the surrounding lands, most of which are agricultural. Size and Shapes: In rural areas, the shapes of the courtyard most commonly seen are either square or rectangle [3]. As the family grows and extends to the adjacent lands, the courtyard tends to be interlocking in nature. Huts tend to be rectangular not square while courtyards tend to be square not rectangular. Other shapes such as circle, triangle, pentagon, etc. are perceived to be not acceptable. This is because they seem to be difficult to accommodate material, cultural and environmental needs. Square courtyard is preferable over rectangle because it provides optimum space use without wastage (during separating paddy from straw by making Fig 1. Different shapes of a courtyard 2 UIA 2017 Seoul World Architects Congress

3 cows walk upon it- they create circle and circle fits into square). Nonetheless, square and rectangular shaped courtyard can be commonly found. Variation of Spaces adjacent to the courtyard in a homestead: In the homestead the courtyard- a common space for the whole homestead, is not an enclosed space, rather has leaks to other adjoining areas namely secondary-yard, indoor and semi-outdoor spaces. These three spaces have no defined boundary of their own rather they overlap and have a fluid quality [4]. Courtyard: In a rural homestead, the dwelling units face all sides of the courtyard (locally termed as uthan ) and can be entered only through this space. Often these blocks have shaded open verandahs, which provide cool out-door spaces. The verandah is a semi-private space and serves as a transition zone from the semi-public courtyard to the private house interior. Secondary-yards: Secondary-yards are the four relatively smaller spaces in corners connected with the courtyard through gaps between building units. Between the detached indoor spaces, i.e., building units, relatively smaller outdoor spaces i.e., the secondary yards, connects the larger outdoor spaces and spaces planted with vegetation. They serve different functions according to their orientation and location. For example, secondary-yards may accommodate tube-well, toilet, storage, climbing vegetable beds, sun-bathing space during winter, drying space for food and grains, poultry sheds, children s play, women s as well as men s socialization, access to the courtyard etc. Beyond secondary-yards and the building units there are vegetation spaces created by different types of productive plants. Seasonal climbing vegetables on temporary raised-platforms and on roof top which expand the surface area of vegetation spaces. Indoor and Semi-outdoor spaces: Indoor (rooms, animal sheds, storage, granary etc.) and semi-outdoor spaces (verandah, sometimes kitchen, etc) are more conspicuous than outdoor spaces except the obvious one-the courtyard. All these spaces overlap and are fluid in nature. Fig.2. Plan of a rural homestead Fig 3 Variation of spaces and uses around a courtyard Variation of activities: The courtyard principally contributes to an introverted layout of the homestead, presenting a closed surface to the outside, so circulation into the building is usually through the courtyard. Being an extension of the indoor living areas, this courtyard has many purposes; every bit of it is usable space. UIA 2017 Seoul World Architects Congress 3

4 The various types of activities that occur in a courtyard are: Daily Activities include: a) Drying clothes b) Outdoor cooking or preparing foods c) Sleeping is uncommon in our context despite the hot-humid climate for fear of evil spirits or assault, because although visually private, the courtyard has a sense of openness and is easily accessible from the outside. d) Circulation is through the courtyard e) Children playing, gossiping, family gathering etc. Seasonal Activities include: a) Drying crops and food items- e.g. grains b) Paddy thrashing, processing agricultural products c) Making household artifacts Others a) Social events such as weddings are also held in the courtyard, especially in the larger ones. b) Even the gaps between the buildings are utilized for outdoor activities because they tend to be shaded. During the day, the courtyard becomes the territory of the women because-most of the men are away working in the fields or outside the homestead. In addition to various household activities, women also visit neighbors and spend time in their courtyards, unhampered by the presence of men during daytime. Women working in and around the courtyard can keep an eye on the activities occurring within the very space. Thus, providing security and also ensuring the maintenance of the space. Also, the introverted layout provides a sense of security for the women and children as they carry out their activities within the bounded space. 3 Modern Urban Houses: The morphology of the modern houses has reduced the scope of using a courtyard. Previously, it was said that the provision of wide verandah in some houses allowed some of the courtyard activities to be carried out there [6] but in modern times the verandahs are narrow and are usually attached separately to various zones, namely- formal, family and service. Also due to higher cost and demand of urban land spaces are organized in a compact fashion. As a result the dining or family space is now becoming the hub of the household activities which can be termed as a modern alternative to the traditional uthan. [8] Various Factors Affecting the Urban House Form are: i) Physical limitations of the land ii) Boundary conditions iii) Materials and technology iv) Climate v) Economic Factors vi) Changing Social and Cultural values vii) Migration of international styles and standards None of the factors are however, stagnant either in time or space. In later days regular plot demarcation, road layout due to densification also added to the list. Adaptation Due to Urbanization: a) Lead to change in habits and activities as opposed to traditional behaviors b) A series of alteration and adjustments occurred: i) in planning ii) in organization and hierarchy of space iii) Façade treatment/ physical expression 4 UIA 2017 Seoul World Architects Congress

5 As it developed there were constraints to the extent these patterns could be maintained and eventually the urban house conformed more to western ideas of living. 4. Urban Apartments: In present condition it is now acceptable to have houses designed as apartment, i.e. flats stacked one above the other. These multi-storied apartments often comprises of several units in each floors. Architects can often design a court of approx 50 x 30 exists in the centre which can be accessed from the ground level. The central court remains dead most part of the day except when few children come to play in the afternoon. This lack of connection to the ground does not make it possible to carry out certain traditional functions associated with the ground. The court serves no other purpose to its inhabitants except light and cross-ventilation. Fig4. Plan of a typical modern apartment unit Fig 5. View of a court in modern apartments The present morphology of urban houses thus reduced the scope of using a courtyard. However as already mentioned- the dining or family space is now becoming hub of the household activities. The study of the urban houses has given some idea of what a contemporary house means in the present context. In the light of the discussion it is now possible to propose some idea of what the space might be like in the future. 5 Proposed ideas: Based on the research few design ideas of urban courtyard have been proposed as follows: Fig 6. Proposed ideas UIA 2017 Seoul World Architects Congress 5

6 5 Conclusions: The courtyard in the rural Bangladeshi context is not only a working space. It has a special meaning for households and communities i.e. it allows separating household functions such as dwelling, cooking and toilet, which if designed otherwise might not work well in the existing rural context. It represents a time-tested indigenous site layout that has developed according to contextual requirements. In a similar fashion owing to our rural roots, it was believed for the sake of this research that if some of the features of the rural courtyard could be incorporated in the urban houses then there might be a possibility of improving the urban lifestyles. In that connection some idea of what the new transformed space might look like has been exercised within the limitation of the research paper. This new idea of urban courtyard needs to be implemented in real projects in order to understand if the proposed idea will sustain or not. Each building sites are unique and so are the factors determining the design scopes but by using the geometry of solid and void, endless solutions can be generated in order to improve the living conditions of urban inhabitants. References [1] ADB Preparing the Greater Dhaka Sustainable Urban Transport Corridor Project.Consultant s report. Manila (TA 7415-BAN).Available on: [2] McGee, Terry (27 September 2006). "Urbanization Takes on New Dimensions in Asia's Population Giants". Population Reference Bureau. Retrieved 27 September 2006\ [3] Mallick, Fuad H and Kabir, Khondokher H- Aspiring above the line: Space in Rural Homesteads of Bangladesh. [4] Mallick, Fuad H and Kabir, Khondokher H- Dynamic Vernacular: Outdoor Spaces in the homesteads of the Ultra Poor. [5] Ahmed, Iftekhar K. The Rural Bangladeshi Courtyard. BRAC University journal, Vol. III,No ,pp 9-15 [6] Mallick, Fuad.H A Local Approach To Urban Housing, M.Phil Arc, [7] Alexander, Christopher- Timeless Way of Building. [8] K. Iftekhar Ahmed The Rural Bangladeshi Courtyard. BRAC University journal, Vol. III,No ,pp 9-15 [9] Rahman Rabeya, Rethinking The Courtyard In The Urban Context, undergraduate thesis dissertation, 2007 ( unpublished). 6 UIA 2017 Seoul World Architects Congress