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Abstract

This speculative design study aims to construct the idea of nothingness as an active and generative element of architecture. Nothingness, understood as voids, empty, and negative spaces, can be reinterpreted as a productive condition that opens up new spatial possibilities. Such a productive condition demonstrates the interdependence between nothingness and the spatial existence of something. The project explores how nothingness constructs the perceptibility of particular spatial terrain through void as architectural design operations. Through creating dystopian contextual scenarios where all spaces have been used up, the study identifies various void forms present in existing structures, classifying these voids based on spatial categories and formulating the potential these voids have in shaping perception. As a result, it captures spaces that project nothingness and are lacking definition, to be transformed for spaces usable for any purpose, following the user's perception. This study suggests that architecture can originate from nothingness—to create infinite potential of new architectural proposition in the speculative contextual zones of the Neglected, the Ruin, and the Underground. Through exploring void as architectural operations, this study hopes to reflect on the expanded role of nothingness beyond simply being an overlooked, undefined aspects of space. The study concludes that the idea of nothingness may unlock various potentials in the context where space is limited but full of latent potential, such as in post-disaster or in adaptive reuse situations.

First Page

102

Last Page

119

References

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Author Biography

Fatiharla Imanisahda
Fatiharla Imanisahda earned her Bachelor of Architecture from Universitas Indonesia. She is interested in concept-driven design and enjoys exploring various architectural methodologies, especially those that engage with narrative and spatial experimentation. She is currently working as an architectural intern at a design bureau and has been involved in several design-related activities, including freelance projects. In 2024, she served as Head of Content Archive and Arrangement for AFAIR UI, part of the Sketch Division in Ekskursi UI, and also a teaching assistant at Universitas Indonesia.

Yandi Andri Yatmo
Yandi Andri Yatmo is a Professor of Architecture at Universitas Indonesia. He obtained his PhD in Architecture, Master of Architecture, and Postgraduate Diploma in Architecture from the University of Sheffield. His professional experience includes working for the Singapore Housing and Development Board (HDB) and Encona Engineering, and in recent years, he has been engaged in various research-based design projects. His current works are primarily on design theories and methods and their relevance to design practice. He was awarded the FuturArc Green Leadership Award in 2019, the Holcim Award Asia Pacific in 2011, the National Lecturer Award in 2012, the IAI Jakarta Award in 2012, and numerous design competition prizes at national and international levels. He was the chair of the Architectural Education Board for the Indonesian Architects' Institute (IAI) and is the leader of the Architectural Design Lab (AD-Lab) at Universitas Indonesia. He is the co-editor of the Interiority Journal and the curator for the Tanahku Indonesia Exhibition 2017, the Architecture Fair 2016 and 2020 at the National Gallery of Indonesia, and the Jakarta Architecture Triennale 2015.

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