PEOPLES' ASSOCIATION HEADQUARTERS

Abstract

Recreation is the participation in certain forms of activity in group or alone where the individual finds opportunity for self-expression and from it derives fun, relaxation and pleasure. It allows the individual to feel a sense of freedom and self-forgetfulness. When the state provides opportunity for people to express their creativity and talents through public recreation, it can be read as a political operation, responsive to the aims of those in power and influence. Public recreation, as run by the Peoples' Association, are seen as means to social ends such as therapy for the social "ills", entrance into social participation, skill development and the fulfillment of social functions. The knowledge of the Peoples' Association capacity to reinforce the ruling authority can provide the awareness to confront, criticize and counteract or even accept the workings of public recreation in society. The design project intends to provide that knowledge, the multi-facets of the Peoples' Association in the architecture of its new headquarters. The project attempts to surface the dual nature of the organisation, an apparatus of control and that of a service to the nation in providing recreational opportunities and resources. Architecture, in the articulation of forms and spaces, can orchestrate the activities to provide the medium for awareness.