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Rumah Baca Rumah Baca was designed in a way that it functions as an ‘interface’ with its physical and social environment. Achmad D. Targiyana, or better known as Pak Apep (read more about him in the sidebar), designed his own house in such a way that he could maintain the everyday kampung (village) life— through the public library component that the house was named after—while taking care of the building typology and choice of materials. He followed his “common sense about architecture and its possibility to be part of the local community”. And involved the community he did. More on that later on in this article.

The house, located at the north of Bandung, stands on a 330-square metre plot of land, and to save as much green space as possible, it only takes up 120 square metres at 4 metres deep. The sloping land is another factor attributing to the building’s slim form—Pak Apep did not want to cut too deep into it, which became the basis of the house’s design.

Open tO aiR and lightCharacterised by its openness, Rumah Baca is designed and positioned to

increase cross ventilation to keep out heat and to lower humidity. Moreover, because of the 2-metre extension of the roof on both sides, the house is spared from direct solar glare. Rather, the interior is lit by filtered daylight. Due to its availability, low cost and malleability, bamboo is used for the door and window panels, and it is woven to obtain ‘lightness’ and a degree of transparency, while allowing air to go through. To cut cost he also used recycled wood, at approximately 60 percent of the normal price, which was purchased and prepared at a workshop at Jalan Soekarno-Hatta in southern Bandung.

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1 Bamboo and recycled wood were used as main building materials 2 Naturally lit interior 3 Exterior view 4 Veranda 5 The use of bamboo, recycled wood and red bricks gives the house a natural, rustic feel

by Roy Voragen

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Achmad D. Tardiyana: Sensibilities of an Architect

Pak Apep teaches studio and urban architecture as well as contemporary issues in urban design at the Institute of Technology Bandung (ITB). In his classes, he stresses the importance of taking the social context into consideration. “Architects,” he says, “do not work in a closed-off space.” Students have to realise that they are going to work as a part of social dynamics. Therefore, he characterises architects as mediators: they mediate between the many interests involved. Before taking his lessons, students often think that architecture is about mastering techniques and aesthetic forms and how to apply these, and that architects have full autonomy over their products. Pak Apep is teaching them to shift their mindsets: “In order to implement technical skills, social skills and political awareness are needed.” His intention is to demystify the practice of architecture by showing that it is embedded within a social context.

Recently, Pak Apep started his postgraduate studies (he is already an assistant professor), doing his research on the spatial dimensions of the informal economy, especially the relationship between the informal economy and public space.

Besides working as a lecturer and researcher at ITB, Pak Apep practices architecture at the Bandung-based architecture firm Urbane as a senior architect. Pak Apep is sensitive to the power structures in society. And he is aware of the danger that architecture could be used to legitimise existing power structures.

He also realises that the actual design processes at Urbane is a tight rope between, on the one hand, his and his colleagues’ ideal to improve the quality of public space and, on the other hand, the needs of private clients. He admits that “it is very hard to change the mindset of the client, not only because they have the money, but also because most clients do not prioritise sustainable architecture in general and public space in particular since they often write off an asset after approximately a decade.” Urbane architects try to challenge the client in the hope that a compromise makes the creation of public space possible. Moreover, Urbane has a subdivision, Urbane Community, which works with and for the community.

For his 50th birthday, Pak Apep’s friends decided to collect his architectural writings into a book titled so.lil.o.quy. A limited edition, this book is a collection of his musings on architecture and also on the process of designing his house. It will be re-published for a wider audience in the near future.

projects

Bandung Indonesia Sun Path

22nd Dec

21st Jun

Equinox

Project DataProject NameRumah BacaLocationBandung, Indonesia Completion Date Mid 2010Site Area330 m2

Gross Floor Area120 m2

Client/OwnerAchmad D. TardiyanaPrincipal ArchitectAchmad D. TardiyanaMain ContractorSonny NasrullahMechanical & Electrical EngineerFirman HanafiCivil & Structural EngineerSonny NasrullahImages/Photos Achmad D. Tardiyana; Roy Voragen

6 & 7 The holes in the wall and bamboo screens allow daylighting and cross ventilation 8 Section 9 Elevation 10 Ground floor plan 11 Veranda

by Roy Voragen

Pak Apep

Adjoining the workspace on the third floor is a small terrace at the front side of the house; small light shafts are constructed in the floor of this terrace to provide light to the dining table on the second floor. Moreover, at the left of the terrace, part of the roof is made of glass tiles to provide light into the staircase and the entrance.

The house’s concrete frame also allows for improvisation. Some decisions were made after the frame was put into place, for instance, the brick wall in the living room. The holes in the wall serve to bring in additional light and aid in cross ventilation. Furthermore, Pak Apep has plans to make further adjustments such as adding a rainwater catchment system for flushing the toilet and watering the plants.

Open tO cOmmunity/puBlicThe design of the house explicitly deals with a public component—it has a

public-private hierarchy. The first floor is the most public and the third floor the most private. On the first floor, Pak Apep plans to open a children’s library. And because the house is built on a slope, the backyard can function as a small amphitheatre for events. The first floor is connected to a veranda on the front and the amphitheatre to the back. The amphitheatre connects to a veranda, which leads to the second floor, where the kitchen, dining room and living room are, as

well as a guestroom and the bathroom (the only closed-off spaces). The master bedroom and workspace are on the third floor.

Besides opening his house to serve as a public space, Pak Apep has also ‘opened’ his house to the community when he enlisted his neighbours’ help during construction. Some were hired as construction workers and some helped in weaving the furniture such as the bamboo panels. Although construction costs became higher than initially calculated (labour costs constituted 40 percent of the total cost as compared to a typical average of 24 to 30 percent), the community was immediately involved in contributing to the public space that this private house provides. Moreover, it is also a simple way to adapt to the skills of the local workers.

challenges aheadWhile the house has been designed with a public function in mind, it is not

yet used as such. Pak Apep gives two reasons for this: time constraint and a psychological barrier (which goes in both directions). Although the design process is important for the creation of public space, public meaning assigned to a place lies in its everyday usage. The gap between the official name—Rumah Baca (referring to its intended use)—and the nickname given by the community—‘bamboo house’ (referring to the main building material)—says as much.

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