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Hong Kong New Squatter

Part 2 Project 2011
Chi Yin Stephen Chan
University of Hong Kong | China
High land price policy and mode of housing production takes away from Hong Kong people the Right to the City. For the high cost we pay for housing, we have little control over our dwelling environment. To some, non-subsidized housing is unaffordable. While for those who can afford, they usually purchase developer imposed “life style”.

This situation urge us to look into the primitive mode of dwelling --- squatting. In squatter village, people pay little or no cost for the land. People are users, designer and builder. Each squatter house is a unique reflection of spatial autonomy.

The project aims to provide Hong Kong people with a mo¬bile framework to make, make changes, and make use of space. In this thesis, architecture becomes an act, an act of fighting a guerrilla warfare against the authority with a goal of re-capturing the fading Right to the City.

Since the act of squatting is as important as the physical structure, an alternative design approached was experimented.

Following the construction of 1:1 prototype, I squatted in this self-made mobile house for 3 weeks. During the three weeks, various changes were made to the structure to refine the design. In New Squatter life style, the identities of designer, builder and user are so mixed up. Thus New Squatters can have a real control of space.

Through this project, it was hoped that people can be liberated from regulations and laws on land ownership and usage. By providing an alternative and ironic dwelling type, the project is a criticism and potential solution to housing problem which Hong Kong is facing.

Chi Yin Stephen Chan

Tutor(s)

2011
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