Constructing the Loose Terrains: Celebration of Movements in Urban Park Design

Abstract

This paper discusses the design process of an urban park, exploring the idea of loose terrains and how it may support various urban activities. Architecture as a terrain extends from the existing natural environment, celebrating possibilities of movement, be it up, down, twisting and turning. The idea of looseness provides undefined existence of space, where every corner is a space of possibility that generates various activities in an open way, where people may sit, play, run, and stay depending on the body and minds that define it. The study explores such idea in the design project of urban park at Harapan Mulia, Central Jakarta. The design creates contours and terrains within the park, developing different terrains of elevation which provides a new experience for the visitors.  It provides opportunities for various activities, allowing movement between the existing trees that produces different perspectives. Exploring architecture as a terrain extend space and time, providing slowness and triggering the eyesight to explore the topographical space more deeply within the intertwine of nature and the built environment. Instead of a fixed and defined space for activities, architecture becomes a stimulus of possibility, manifesting through the loose terrains of the park.