Inspired by the Architectural Review, we decided to ask our Malaysian architectural community – “What would you say to your older self in 10 years?”.In this issue coinciding with the first anniversary of our Apa Kata Kamu? column, authors from the industry and academic circle write to themselves time ahead.Penning down words of advice and solace, our young writers recount their past and present in relation to their future.
You do not know when you started dreading the future.You were not like this.Perhaps the crushing reality of capitalism finally dawned on you.Hence, you decided to practice architecture unconventionally through academia.You envisioned that architectural education shall not work in a silo anymore.Architectural education would bleed into other disciplines, having collaborations, and creating tangible impact in the real world.Do not succumb to mediocrity.Continue to work hard and be kind to people regardless of how frightening the world becomes.Continue to feel.Continue the difficult work of dismantling oppressive systems.Never forget every individual who helped you to reach where you are so far.Lastly, do not despair if you have not reached where you want to be.
— Cheah Ee Von
Where do I begin?Did you purchase the drafting table you searched for online for your 20th birthday?I hope you did because it would save you from all the back pains in the world.That Ikea table you have in your room could barely fit A2-sized papers for God’s sake!So, have we figured out our signature style yet?I hope we did because how amazing would that be!What about all the sleepless nights and mental breakdowns?Does it make you stronger?Does it make you laugh when you remember all the sudden bursts of tears?Or does it tear you up because knowing me, knowing you, we have always been appreciative and emotional towards our little battles and struggles in the pursuit of our dreams?There are so many changes that can happen within a month, but in a decade?
That sounds like a high possibility for major growth!We were struggling in 2022 trying to look for the light at the end of the tunnel but we never stopped trying.We have always persevered.I believe we still are.I hope everything was all worth it though.
— Shyazuana S.
Though we may still be amid rapid urbanisation, remember to create a liveable environment.A surrounding that promotes a healthy lifestyle, be it physically, mentally, or spiritually.
— Christopher Heng Yii Sern
The saying “architecture is not a linear profession” is true!Set off from graduating and obtaining a licence to giving back to society with curated spaces for people through physically-built environments, it is not all there is.Architecture is a profession ever-adaptive to the current time, with new specialised platforms waiting to be discovered at every corner.It is an infinite profession encompassing vast potential to educate the world about the value of quality living.
Thank you for the courage in taking that step to embark on the platform of media to capture architecture from the eyes of an architect.People always say that no one cares about your life or the work you create as much as you do, so keep pushing what others might think is not even possible.
— Kylie Shiak
Having graduated with my master’s now – instead of creating great architecture for the community, I have been evaluating the colourful bars as complex as the cities that define the programme planning, apart from designing agglomeration of high-density skyscrapers that are yet another surplus that means nothing to the community.I have slowly learned that architecture has become just another tool to serve the capitalist system in creating endless, unbeneficial, and oversupplied service apartments, condominiums, and shopping complexes in the shortest amount of time possible.Every development is generated by the infallible system that centres around profit margins that result in indistinguishable and monotonous buildings on the plots of land separated by chaotic and congested infrastructures that nobody is interested in improving simply because they are the dogma commonly accepted by society.I have accepted the mismatch between my career and my notion in architecture, and understand it as the necessary path full of hardships and confusion to achieve my calling.
In 10 years when I have gained sufficient experience and knowledge, I would remind myself of the once excited and passionate young graduate who stepped into architecture to put great significance on creating the tangible reality that defines the sense of place and improves the community’s way of living.While we can’t change the system, we can always be with like-minded people to do our part.
— Chuah Say Yin
I have slowly come to terms that architecture in this context is merely just buildings to laymen and nothing more than a product for sale.However, from time to time, I would come across incidents that reminded me why I wanted to study architecture in the first place, which was to be in a field that wasn’t an option but a need.To be reminded that no matter how the world changes you would still need a built environment to live in.It may seem like an insignificant job compared to anyone who is in tech now, but at least I am still contributing one way or another.I mean, at least everyone still needs a home to stay in and someone to design it.
The only bright side to this experience is that I now fully understand that any design, no matter how grand, is nothing unless you can bring it to life.It would not be worth anything if it is on paper.Hence it slowly became a dilemma whether to stay or leave this field, just because of the sense of fulfilment it gives when designs are realised versus the amount of work that must go into every single project.This is probably how every fresh graduate struggles.
To my older self in ten years, if you are still in this field, I’m curious what made you come to terms with working with such a narrow perception of what people have towards architecture and so proud of you for figuring it out.
— Anonymous
We have always been driven by this idealistic view of what the future holds for us, where we aspire to be and become.The term ‘architecture and the built environment’ alludes to the architect being a romanticist that pushes his ideals to create a better environment to serve the issues of people.However, when it comes to reality, the truth is more complicated than that.Motivation being driven to the edge, architects become a tool for the completion of a project.Ideas and methodology were replaced by budgets and constraints.Looking forward, the romanticist should not stop dreaming or hoping.Continue being inspired, continue to inspire and one day perhaps, in retrospect, the years of struggle will strike you as the most beautiful.
— Ilinaz Mior
A post-COVID pandemic would be but a distant memory to you ten years later and yet the lasting impact would have played out in the built environment in the times since.Albeit the outlook during the times of lockdown was grim, it highlighted instances that one would have missed in the haste of our ever-bustling lifestyles; the quietness of traffic-free streets; nature reclaiming its health; time-gained to reflect and rest instead of travelling from place to place.Perhaps as architects, these instances could be intentionally replicated in striving for healthier and more efficiently built environments.
I hope that despite the realities of the business of architecture, we would have recognised and continue to pursue the opportunity to raise the overall quality of life and strive for the built environment of the common man.Not just to fulfil a function or the bare minimum but to care, inspire and delight.If architecture is but inhabited sculpture, may these values continue to mould that into something worthy.
— Liz Ng
