Participatory art as driving force for urban regeneration in Bandar Penggaram

Abstract

Rapid economic growth and development has caused the cultural heritage and urban character of Bandar Penggaram Batu Pahat to disappear at an alarming rate, despite increasing governmental and public concern, without effective legal policy and protection. The purpose of this study is to identify the role and methods of participatory arts that could be employed in urban regeneration to improve the social sustainability of Bandar Penggaram. The objectives of this research is to determine the role of participatory art in alleviating the social issue for urban regeneration, to investigate the methods of integration of participatory art with the existing urban context and lastly to identify the suitable building typology and programme that can utilize public participatory art to initiate the urban regeneration in Bandar Penggaram. The awareness of the local community in conserving and preserving the urban character is still very low compared to those listed in the UNESCO World Heritage Sites such as Malacca and Georgetown. Besides this, many of the locals have moved out from the old town to the residential areas nearby and left the shophouses abandoned, especially at night. This has made Bandar Penggaram a dead town after 7.00 p.m. There are no proper gathering spaces for the people in the town to carry out their social activities. Hence, it is critical to develop a suitable community-oriented use of public place for community empowerment and social interaction. In the context of the urban fabric, art and culture is one of the significant elements that help in developing public spaces. This research was conducted by using on-site observation, face-to-face interview, questionnaire survey and case studies as the main source of data collection to achieve the objectives. From the findings, four design frameworks are proposed, which is for urban planning, building architecture design, building typology and programme. To cultivate the participation of the community, the quality of the public space as place is very important. In short, the research proposed the integration of public participatory art into the urban fabric of Bandar Penggaram as the driving tool to regenerate the town. Finally, the studies and data in this research are further utilized to assist in the Design Thesis project.