Antwerp - Tha Thien - Khlong Lat Mayom
The first phase consists of analyzing three markets: one international and two others in Bangkok, one permanent and the other temporary.
Firstly, the Antwerp's place market is a project that questions the relationship between distances, transparency and light. It allows a new reading of the human scale with a simple structure and a porch which provides an ideal shelter for events that attract large crowds, for example its weekend markets and occasional theatrical performances and concerts.
Then, Tha Thien's dry products market allows to analyze the ratio to the ventilation of odors. The great work on the framework and the section makes interesting the study of the stands of the sellers.
Finally, Khlong Lat Mayom's floating market makes it possible to rethink the definition of the floating market by making it very flexible. Here we find mostly cooked products, and being spread out on the ground, many scenarios are offered along the canal.
ANTWERP THEATREPEIN MARKET
The Theaterplein is one of Antwerp’s biggest squares but before the intervention of the architects it was a space without limits where it was difficult to calculate the distances and to find one’s bearingss. Its large dimensions and absence of elements that might have facilitated some reading of its scale made it an unwelcoming and ill-defined space.The project was to construct a large porch in front of the theatre’s brutalist façade, covering a good part of the square. Suspended from a height of fifteen metres, its ceiling consists of translucent plaques that offer protection from the rain while also letting the light through, along with large lamellas that filter it. It is sustained by a reticulated arrangement of very slender, white-painted metal pillars, which are a vertical prolongation of the underground car park. They house the drainpipes for collecting rainwater coming off the roof and drop water owards a new garden on the south side of the square and outside the cover of the ceiling.
The new porch counters the emptiness that madein the past the Theaterplein a desolate place, while also introducing order and facilitating reading of its scale. For all its exquisite lightness, it achieves a degree of monumentality that endows it with the status of an iconic object in the landmark. It provides an ideal shelter for events that attract large crowds, for example its weekend markets and occasional theatrical performances and concerts. In its everyday facet, the square’s slopes and different levels make a attraction for the skateboarders who frequent the space and who can now enjoy it without the rain being a deterrent. The simplicity of the structure thus allows the flexibility of the uses, an essential stake for this kind of project of drawing of the city on a large scale. Henceforth, the project questions different scales, that of the district and that of the metropolis of Antwerp.
THA THIEN MARKET
Tha Tien is situated behind Wat Pho along the Chao Phraya Rive, it was the trade center of Thailand during the 17th century. The market on the pier was the place where foreign junks were delivered. It was also an agricultural market reserved for royal members and then during the 18th century it became a flotating market with some shophouses to better sustain the marketplace. At that time, you were more likely to find fresh fruit, vegetables, fish and other daily use food produce. Slowly, it fell out of use and evolved to become what it is today.
Now, you will see a host of small retail vendors selling salted fish, various dried seafood, curry pastes, spices and many exotic items. There are also foods being prepared for wholesale at the Tian Markets, offering a hint of insight into this industry trade in Bangkok.
The entry of the market through the passages of shophouses is discreet, the sequence of entry reveals different atmospheres that contrast the city and a more intimate inner world. The Tha Tien Market is also conveniently located in a roofed area, built during the reign of King Rama V. The market is structured according to the frameworl wich fall at the midle of the stands in order to free up the retail spaces. The odors are strong and the number of flies important but the system of wooden frame sloping in one direction allows good ventilation and therefore the buyer to feel confortable.
KHLONG LAT MAYOM FLOATING MARKET
Khlong Lat Mayom is located in the outskirts of Bangkok at 20 minutes from the center, it is situated in a green area along a canal. Here we are not in the noisy and noisy atmosphere of the bangkok markets. The atmosphere is relaxed under the magnificent roof in bamboo, karaoke resonates throughout the market and frying oil and grilled fish takes us to the nose.
The largest part of the market is built on firm ground. It is called floating market but the actual “floating” part of the market is very quiet while the non-floating part is massive. The canal here is very narrow and only few boats are parked all alongside the riverbank and below a low bridge, cooking for customers who sit at low tables all along the water. There are just a few vendors who mostly sell things like potted plants and flowers and fresh fruits and vegetables from their boats, with just a few restaurant boats but prepared food is truly why people come here. The inside part looks like a huge food court where you can find cooked products from everywhere in Thailand
The market is spread over several hundred meters along the canal, which is why different architectural sequences are offered to us but what dictates these different scenarios is always the khlong. One side is dedicated to the fresh market, mostly beautiful veggies and fruits, while the other side sells all kinds of colorful snacks, sweets and cooked food so we could say how that the definition of a floating market is a bit stretched, the place being in fact more of a riverside market.
The largest part of the market is built on firm ground. It is called floating market but the actual “floating” part of the market is very quiet while the non-floating part is massive. The canal here is very narrow and only few boats are parked all alongside the riverbank and below a low bridge, cooking for customers who sit at low tables all along the water. There are just a few vendors who mostly sell things like potted plants and flowers and fresh fruits and vegetables from their boats, with just a few restaurant boats but prepared food is truly why people come here. The inside part looks like a huge food court where you can find cooked products from everywhere in Thailand
The market is spread over several hundred meters along the canal, which is why different architectural sequences are offered to us but what dictates these different scenarios is always the khlong. One side is dedicated to the fresh market, mostly beautiful veggies and fruits, while the other side sells all kinds of colorful snacks, sweets and cooked food so we could say how that the definition of a floating market is a bit stretched, the place being in fact more of a riverside market.
