ITU A|Z • Vol 16 No 3 • November 2019 • 115-129

From rigidity to ephemerality:

Architecture as a socio-spatial
assemblage of heterogeneous
components

Ferro YUDISTIRA1, Yandi Andri YATMO2, Paramita ATMODIWIRJO3

1
ferroplace@gmail.com • Department of Architecture, Faculty of Engineering,
Universitas Indonesia, Depok, Indonesia
2
yandiay@gmail.com • Department of Architecture, Faculty of Engineering,
Universitas Indonesia, Depok, Indonesia
3
mitayandi@gmail.com • Department of Architecture, Faculty of Engineering,
Universitas Indonesia, Depok, Indonesia

Received: May 2019 • Final Acceptance: August 2019

Abstract
This study discusses the idea of ephemeral architecture as an alternative
approach to overcoming the rigidity issue of the built environment. Ephemeral
architecture is an architectural space that appears and disappears in a short period
of time. The ephemerality of such a space indicates that there are components that
are not permanently available in the built environment. The question then arises
as to what these components are, in what way they are present or available, and
how they relate to each other to temporarily form a certain architectural space in
the built environment. Using assemblage as the theoretical approach, the study
investigates these questions through the case of trader space in the courtyard of
doi: 10.5505/itujfa.2019.14890

the Sunda Kelapa mosque in Jakarta. The research makes three main findings
regarding: (1) the heterogeneity of entities that act as architectural components,
including everyday items such as clothes, socks and plastic rugs; (2) the process
of spatial assemblage in which these entities relate and interact; and (3) social
assemblage as the non-physical structure that frames this spatial process.

Keywords
Assemblage, Ephemeral, Rigidity, Everyday items.
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1. Introduction present or available in the built envi-

There is growing awareness of the ronment, and what the process is that
importance of time in architecture, temporarily assembles these compo-
specifically related to the rigidity of the nents into a particular form of archi-
built environment in responding to the tectural space.
“unprecedented population growth, This study investigates these ques-
urbanization, social and technological tions through the case of trader spac-
change” (Lifschutz, 2017, p.8). There- es that appear and disappear in the
fore, instead of a being a rigid and Sunda Kelapa mosque courtyard, in
timeless object, it seems necessary to central Jakarta, Indonesia. This kind
see the built environment as a “mutable of occurrence, a cluster of trader space
subjects much affected by [the] every- inside or near a mosque area, is a com-
day uses and intentional intervention” mon phenomenon in societies that are
of its users (Frank, 2016. p.8). dominated by Muslims, such as that of
Various approaches have been de- Jakarta. However, there is a disjunc-
veloped to overcome this rigidity issue. tive relationship (Tschumi, 1994) be-
However, they tend to focus on the tween the trader space and the mosque
physical structure of the built environ- courtyard, because the courtyard does
ment, either by making the elements not have any specific features to ac-
moveable/changeable, or by making it commodate the trader space. Howev-
suitable for reuse after a structure has er, the cluster of trader spaces still ap-
been dismantled. Some of these efforts pears in the courtyard, albeit only for a
originated many years ago. For in- short period. In other words, this case
stance, in 1961, Cedric Price proposed demonstrates the capability of the built
a design called the fun palace, based environment to accommodate differ-
on an idea about time and uncertainty. ent, or even incompatible, everyday
Price argued that a built environment uses.
should be “enabled rather than deter- Using an approach based on assem-
mined human activities” (Lifschutz, blage theory (DeLanda, 2006; Deleuze
2017, p.8). In Japan, “major corpora- & Guattari, 1980/1987), this study aims
tions are pursuing research and devel- to explain the ephemerality of trader
opment to create systems for moveable space as a process of socio-spatial as-
partitions, bathrooms, and kitchens to semblage. Specifically, it investigates
underpin flexible homes” (Lifschutz, the entities that are involved as compo-
2017, p.12). The approach of Price and nents of the space, the process of rela-
the Japanese corporations can be cate- tion-interaction between these entities,
gorized as an example of ‘architecture and the layer of non-physical structure
as a system’, which can respond to the that frames this process. Understand-
changing demands of users (Murray & ing this socio-spatial assemblage pro-
Brand, 2017). Another approach con- cess, and the wide range of entities in-
siders “what happens to architecture volved as resources in this process, can
when its time is up”; how its elements contribute to developing an alternative
can be dismantled, and then reused by design approach that can reduce the ri-
a community (Armborst, D’Orca, & gidity of the built environment.
Theodore, 2016, p.110).
The idea of ephemeral architecture 2. Theoretical discussion
offers an alternative approach in re- 2.1. Ephemeral architecture: Event,
sponse to this rigidity issue by extend- materiality and compatibility
ing the range of components that form The basic idea of ephemeral archi-
the architectural space. Ephemerality tecture is architecture that appears and
indicates the importance of compo- disappears in a short period of time.
nents which are not part of the physi- The term ‘ephemeral’ is derived from
cal structure of the built environment; the Greek epi (on) and hemerai (a day),
non-static components that are only which means ‘lasting only a day’ (Par-
present or available within a particular tridge, 1966). To date, there have been
time-frame. The question subsequent- two points of view in the discourse on
ly arises as to what these components ephemeral architecture: first, the archi-
are. In addition, in what way they are tecture that is related to special events;

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and second, that which is seen through Within this contextual frame, this
the fleeting materiality of its compo- study aims to investigate these ‘other’
nents. components involved in the formation
From the first point of view, ephem- of certain architectural space, and how
eral architecture is an architectural their availability affects the ephemeral-
space that appears along with special ity of such space. The following section
or planned event, and then disappears discusses assemblage theory as an ap-
when the event ends. A special event proach to identifying and analyzing the
is an event held or created to achieve entities that act as the components of
specific objectives or to satisfy specif- architectural space, the peculiar char-
ic needs (Getz, 2007; Matthews, 2008). acteristics of the relationship between
These objectives vary, from simple en- them, and the phases of the process in
tertainment, urban rituals or festivals which the components relate and in-
(Macy & Bonnemaison, 2008; Monin, teract.
2003); to cultural and state celebrations
(Vinsentini, 2008); pilgrimage/reli- 2.2. Architecture as spatial
gious rituals (Mehrotra & Vera, 2014); assemblage
and expressions of ideas or political Assemblage is an idea about a
propaganda (Delbeke, 2008). The com- ‘whole’ formed by heterogenous com-
ponents that form the architectural ponents (Anderson, Kearnes, McFar-
space, for instance stages, backdrops, lane, and Swanton, 2012; DeLanda,
lighting etc., are specifically created to 2006; Harris, 2016; Müller, 2015). The
support these objectives. idea of assemblage could be considered
From the second point of view, the as a noun (object) or as a verb (pro-
ephemerality of architecture is seen cess) (Anderson et al., 2012; Dovey &
through the fleeting characteristics of Woods, 2014; McFarlane, 2011). As
its components. The focus of related a noun, assemblage is an entity that
discussion explores the possibility of emerges through a ‘relation of exteri-
an architecture formed by non-visu- ority’ between its components. This
al and immaterial elements, such as relation means that various entities
sound, smell or even electromagnetic which act as the assemblage compo-
waves (Haque, 2004; Karandinou 2013; nents do not merge into one seamless
Pallasmaa, 2014). This exploration unity or organism. Instead, they “may
aims to increase the utilization of all be detached from it and then plugged
the human senses, instead of just the into a different assemblage in which its
senses of vision, in the experience of interactions are different” (DeLanda,
architecture. 2006. p.10). In this study, this idea is
Both points of view suggest the in- used to analyze architecture as a spatial
volvement of ‘other’ components that assemblage that temporarily emerges
affect the ephemerality of an architec- through the relation between hetero-
tural space. In other words, the idea geneous components, rather than as a
of ephemeral architecture extends single seamless entity with permanent
the range of components involved in characteristics.
the formation of architecture. How- As a verb, the relation that forms
ever, neither point of view discusses the assemblage is not seen as a static
the importance of these other compo- state. Instead, it is a dynamic process
nents in relation to the contextuality of with specific phases. It is important to
ephemeral architecture; the relation- note that the assemblage theory does
ship between the ephemerality of the not specifically mention the phases of
architectural space and the specific cir- the assemblage process. However, we
cumstances of the built environment, argue that there are two concepts in
in which ephemerality indicates the the theory that can be considered as
importance of components that are not phases: territorialization and deterri-
part of its physical structure. This con- torialization. Territorialization is the
textual frame is important with regard phase in which diverse components
to the effort to increase the flexibility of are temporarily related or connected to
the built environment, making it able each other to define the boundary and
to respond to changes in everyday use. identity of the assemblage, while de-

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territorialization is the phase in which physical structure of the courtyard; 2)

the relation-interaction between com- the overall time-frame of the market/
ponents destabilizes the boundary and bazaar events; 3) the overall variety of
identity of an assemblage, and at some entities (particularly goods) involved
point completely dismantles it (DeLan- in the formation of the trader space;
da, 2006; Deleuze & Guattari, 2004; and 4) the configuration of the spatial
Kennedy, Bruce, McCann & Zapasnik, position of the traders’ space in the
2013; Muller, 2015). courtyard. These data then were used
This process of ‘appearing and dis- as the basis for conducting the second
appearing’ through territorializa- stage of the field observation.
tion-deterritorialization is the link that In the second stage, more specific
connects the idea of the assemblage observations were made to identify all
process with the idea of ephemerality the entities involved as components of
in architecture. Therefore, this study the trader space, and how the relations
uses the idea to analyze the ephemer- and interaction between them made
ality of architectural space as a process the trader space appear or disappear in
of appearing and disappearing, involv- the courtyard. This stage involved three
ing heterogeneous components and trader spaces (figure 1), which were se-
through a particular series of phases. lected based on their level of complex-
However, we do not use territorializa- ity, specifically regarding the quantity
tion-deterritorialization as rigid con- and variety of the components that
ceptual categories, to which any find- formed the space. The first trader sold
ings should be confined. Instead, we men’s clothes, representing a low-com-
use both concepts as starting points or plexity space. The second trader sold
guidance to analyze and understand socks, employing a medium-complex-
the overall appearing-disappearing ity space, while the third trader sold
process of trader space in the Sun- men’s accessories (for example, wallets
da Kelapa mosque courtyard. Besides and belts) in a high-complexity space.
territorialization-deterritorialization, In both stages, the data were record-
other concepts from assemblage theory ed using photographs. In the second
that we use as guidance in the analysis stage, the photos were taken sequen-
process are capacities and properties. tially in the same position to fully cap-
The role of these concepts will be fur- ture the whole appearing-disappearing
ther discussed in the following section. process of the selected trader space
(figure 2). For each selected trader,
3. Research methods this photo-taking process was con-
3.1. Data collection ducted several times, so that the data
This study is a qualitative and em- from each process could be compared
ployed both field observations and in- to check the consistency of the infor-
terviews to collect the data. The data mation. If there were photos from a
from the observations were used to de- certain part of the process that were
velop semi-structured questions for the missing, incomplete or seemed to be
interviews (Cohen & Crabtree, 2006), inadequate (for example, because the
which were held with different parties image of the process was blocked by a
involved, both directly and indirectly, mosque visitor), individual data could
with the research case phenomenon. complement each other.
This combination of multiple meth-
ods and sources of information aims
to achieve a “more valid, reliable and
diverse construction of realities” (Go-
lafshani, 2003, p.604).
The field observation consisted of
two stages. The first stage aimed to ob-
tain an overall picture of the presence
of clusters of trader space inside the
Sunda Kelapa mosque courtyard. The
main information obtained from this Figure 1. From left to right: men’s clothes trader, socks trader,
stage was: 1) the configuration of the accessories trader.

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community. The third party was the

traders. The final party was the porters,
who support the traders in managing
the additional resources used in the
formation of trader space.
The interviews took place on-site(the
Sunda Kelapa mosque courtyard), spe-
cifically in the time-frame of the bazaar
events, namely on Fridays, from ap-
proximately 07:00 to 15:30. This deci-
sion was based on consideration of the
importance of the sites to the research
questions and the data possibly gen-
erated from the interviews (Edwards
& Holland, 2013). For instance, it was
easier for the traders to provide infor-
mation about specific entities (for ex-
ample, physical features of the built en-
vironment, tools and goods) involved
in the formation process of the trader
space while the event was taking place.
The only interviews not conducted on
site were those with the administrative
staff, which took place in the mosque
Figure 2. Example of data from sequential photos. administrative office.

The main aims of the interviews were 3.2. Analysis

to gather information that could not be The study used coding as the
obtained from the field observations. method to analyze the data. Several
For example, from the observations, concepts from assemblage theory
we can see that every trader will were used as the theoretical lens in
occupy a specific position inside the the coding process. However, this
courtyard as a base to form their space. methodological approach did not
However, we are unable to ascertain intend to deliberately confine the
the reasoning behind this action categorization in the coding process
merely through field observation. How to the various theoretical concepts
is a certain trader able to occupy that (based on assemblage theory). These
specific spatial position? Are there any theoretical concepts were intended as
specific rules or regulations? This kind guidance or a starting point of view
of information needed to be collected to sharpen the focus when analyzing
through the interviews. TThe interview the data. Instead of being restricted to
is semi-structured, with primary pieces a pre-established theoretical concept,
of information collected using an this method opens up the possibility
‘interview-guide’, while still open to for adjustment when developing a new
new ways of seeing and understanding framework of conceptual categories to
issues relevant to the topic (Cohen & explain the research findings.
Crabtree, 2006). The paper discusses the results of
The interviews were conducted with the analysis in three sections: (1) so-
various different parties. First, they cial assemblage as the framework of
were held with administrative staff the spatial process; (2) trader space as a
of the official mosque management spatial assemblage; and (3) the phases
institution (called Pengelola Masjid in the appearing-disappearing process
Agung Sunda Kelapa or PMASK). of trader space. Each section contains
One of the most important pieces of several conceptual categories as a base
information from these interviews was to develop understanding from the
the existence of a paguyuban pedagang findings. Three concepts from assem-
(trader community). The second blage theory underlie the analysis in
party was the leader of the traders’ the first and second sections, namely

From rigidity to ephemerality: Architecture as a socio-spatial assemblage of heterogeneous

components
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(1) heterogenous components; (2) ca-

pacities; and (3) properties (Anderson
et al., 2012; DeLanda, 2006; Harris,
2016).
The concept of heterogenous com-
ponents suggests analysis of the wide
range of entities that are possibly in-
volved as components of the assem-
blage, while the concept of capacities
and properties is necessary to analyze
the relationship and interaction be-
tween these components (McFarlane,
2011). Capacities are related to the ca-
pabilities of certain entities that emerge
when they form a relationship and in-
teraction with others (DeLanda, 2006).
Property can be seen as a peculiarity
(for example shape, quality or social
position) or characteristic that is pos- Figure 3. Courtyard position as a transition area.
sessed by a certain entity (Partridge,
1966), which can affect its capacities This trader space occupies the
(DeLanda, 2006). courtyard of the mosque. In terms of
The third section aims to explain physical features, the courtyard does
the ephemerality of trader space as a not have any specific feature to support
spatial assemblage process with spe- or accommodate the presence of this
cific phases. Territorialization and space; for example, no dedicated ki-
deterritorialization are concepts that osks or stalls for the traders. The court-
represent a phase in the assemblage yard has no specific element or area to
process. The concept of territorializa- properly display (and store) the goods.
tion suggests analysis of the phase in Hence, each trader needs to bring ad-
which the relation-interaction between ditional objects and utilize them as re-
entities temporarily defines and stabi- sources to form their own space during
lizes the boundaries and identity of the the bazaar.
architectural space (DeLanda, 2006; However, albeit physically simple,
Kennedy et al., 2013; Müller, 2015). On the courtyard is a transition area that is
the other hand, the concept of deter- passed through by many mosque vis-
ritorialization suggests analysis of the itors (when they arrive and leave the
phase in which the relation-interaction mosque area) (Figure 3). This fact plays
between entities destabilizes the iden-
tity and blurs (and then disassembles)
the boundaries of the space (DeLan-
da, 2006; Kennedy et al., 2013; Muller,
2015).

4. Brief description of the research

case
The case examined in this study is
trader spaces at a weekly event called
pasar (market or bazaar) that take plac-
es inside a mosque called Sunda Kelapa
in central Jakarta, Indonesia. It occurs
every Friday, along with the routine
religious gathering called Shalat Jumat
(Friday prayer). Most of the traders
that participate in the event sell com-
modities such as clothes, shoes, acces-
sories (belts, wallets, small sling bags) Figure 4. Difference between empty (top image)
and electronics. and peak time (bottom image) of the courtyard.

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a crucial role during the peak times of community, but is still occasionally
the bazaar, which occur directly after involved in the bazaar. A Pr plays a
the Friday prayers end (around 12:30 supporting role that helps the traders
– 13:30), when there is a large stream in the spatial assemblage process.
of visitors, most of whom have just Social position is a non-physical
finished their Friday rituals, who walk property of the actors that affects three
through the courtyard and observe the capacities that play a crucial role in the
goods sold by the traders. spatial assemblage process (Figure 5),
Figure 4 show the different condi- namely: 1) the right to occupy a partic-
tion of the courtyard when it is empty ular spatial position inside the court-
and during the peak time of the bazaar. yard; 2) the right to bring and use ob-
Even though this time only exists for jects as (additional) resources that are
approximately 45 minutes to an hour, required to form the trader space; and
preparations to assemble each trader’s 3) the capability to utilize the resources
space starts early in the morning (at and develop a set of relation-interac-
around 06:00 – 10:30). After the peak tions to form the trader space.
time has ended, the traders need to dis- Each actor is only able to actual-
assemble their spaces, which happens ize these capacities in a specific time-
around 13:30 – 14:30. frame, which is during the bazaar that
takes place along with the Friday prayer
5. Results and discussion ritual in the mosque. For example, re-
5.1. Social assemblage: Framework of garding the first capacity, PTs have the
the spatial process right to ‘own’ a particular spatial posi-
The findings reveal the existence tion, which they can use to form a trad-
of social-assemblage in the form er space inside the courtyard. Howev-
of paguyuban pedagang (trader er, they can only occupy this position
community), as a layer of non-physical during the bazaar on Fridays. They
structure that frames the spatial cannot randomly come (for instance in
assemblage process of the trader a Monday morning) and then occupy a
space. The component of this social certain position to form a trader space
assemblage is human actors with inside the courtyard.
particular social positions. In this case The first capacity is crucial because it
there are three social positions, namely allows certain actors to occupy a spatial
permanent trader (PT), additional position that acts as a base to form the
trader (AT) and porter (Pr). A PT is trader space. Actors need to follow two
a member of the trader community, ‘goods-based’ rules to acquire a social
while an AT is not a member of the position as a PT who owns a specific

Figure 5. Relation between social and spatial assemblage.

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spatial position in the courtyard. First, difficulty of this process.

the trader community has a regulation However, the importance of these
regarding a limit on the number of everyday items does not reside in the
similar goods that can be sold. ‘Com- items themselves; instead, it should be
mon goods’, such as clothes, are limited seen through their spatial role when
to five traders, while ‘rare goods’, such they form a relation-interaction with
as traditional medicine, are limited other entities. Based on the concept of
to three traders. Second, traders with capacities from assemblage theory, this
similar goods are strongly suggested study develops the idea of the spatial
not to form their space in adjacent po- role to fully explain the relation-in-
sitions. There is usually a gap of around teraction between the components of
two or three traders between traders of spatial assemblage. This role can be
similar goods. divided into three parts: the role itself,
ATs do not own a specific spatial the function of the role, and the actual
position in the courtyard, so they need realization of the role.
to search for an ‘empty position’ every The idea was developed to demon-
time they want to form their space. strates the variety of entities that act
There are two types of empty position as components of architectural space.
in the courtyard. First, one that is not Different entities can act as compo-
owned by any PT. Second, the position nents with the same spatial role, even
is empty because the PT who owns it though the realization of the role is dif-
is absent. When the AT finds an empty ferent (which also affects the qualities
position, they cannot directly occupy provided by the entities). For example,
it, but need to ask for permission from in trader space, there is a component
the PTs in the area surrounding the with a spatial role as a ‘boundary’. The
empty position. function of a ‘boundary’ in trader
The first capacity is closely related to space is to mark out the courtyard area
the other two. When traders are able to that can be used by traders, especially
occupy a position inside the courtyard, to display their goods. In Case 1 (men’s
then they are also allowed to bring clothes trader), the entity that acts as
(and utilize) various objects as resourc- a ‘boundary’ is a plastic rug, which
es to form a certain set of relations-in- actualizes the role by directly covering
teractions that are required to form the the surface of the courtyard floor. In
trader space. Case 2 (sock trader), beside a plastic
rug, the entity which also does this is
5.2. Spatial assemblage: The an umbrella, which actualizes the role
importance of everyday items and by forming a shaded area that indirectly
the idea of the spatial role covers the courtyard floor. The plastic
This study argues that the ephem- rug and umbrella therefore play the
erality of architectural space is affect- same spatial role (as a boundary), even
ed by the heterogeneity of its compo- though the properties of each lead to
nents. The findings show that there is different actualizations of the role. The
wide range of entities that are involved spatial role is also specifically related
as components that form the trader to the components involved in the (de)
space, including everyday items such territorialization phase, which is when
as clothes, socks, plastic rugs and um- the architectural space appears and dis-
brellas. The availability of these every- appears (the phase will be explained in
day items plays an important role in the following section). In other phases,
the ephemerality of the trader space. the role of each assemblage component
This importance is based on two fac-
tors. First, the traders have limited time Table 1. List of abbreviation for the sub-phases (each sub-phase
to actualize their capacities, specifical- will be explained in the following section).
ly those that allowed them to bring
and utilize these everyday items in the
courtyard. Second, the traders can eas-
ily move or mobilize these items to an-
other location, even though the variety
and number of these can increase the

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will be explained with the concept of phases to further specify their signifi-
capacities and properties. cance in the appearing-disappearing
process of trader space. Tables 2 show
5.3. Spatial assemblage: The information about the overall phases
appearing and disappearing process (and sub-phases) of the spatial assem-
with specific phases blage for each selected case, along with
This section explains how trader the entities that are involved, and the
space appears and disappears in the time-frame of the process.
courtyard through a spatial assemblage In the time-frame bar, there is a spe-
process with three phases: preparation, cific block labeled ‘FPB’ (Friday Prayer
(de)territorialization, and withdrawal. Break). This is the time when the main
Each phase is divided into several sub- part of the Friday Prayer ritual takes

Table 2. Overall phases of the spatial assemblage process.

From rigidity to ephemerality: Architecture as a socio-spatial assemblage of heterogeneous

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124

place. In this specific time-frame, none execute this sub-phase by themselves,

of the bazaar activities is allowed to then they also simultaneously occupy
be performed in the courtyard. This a specific spatial position. If they uti-
stipulation perfectly demonstrates the lize the support of a porter, then the
importance of rules as a part of social resources that are placed by the porter
assemblage in limiting the formation in a specific location will act as tags or
of architectural space in a built envi- placeholders that prevent other traders
ronment. Even though all the resources from occupying the position (figure
are available and ready to use, they are 6-top image).
useless if the actors are unable to utilize ‘Occupying a position’ is the sub-
them. phase in which the trader occupies a
In each phase, there are entities with particular spatial position as a base to
significant and insignificant roles. Sig- form the trader space inside the court-
nificant means that the entities play an
important role in forming the required
relation-interaction related to the pe-
culiarity of each phase in the spatial as-
semblage process. Insignificant means
that the entities are merely present and
involved in the process, but have yet to
make any meaningful contribution to
it.
For example, in the men’s clothes’
trader space, the entities with a signif-
icant role in the ‘defining boundary’
sub-phase are ‘trader’, ‘plastic rug’ and
‘courtyard’. The relation between these
entities defines the boundaries that
specify the trader space area. Mean-
while, the role of ‘clothes’ in this sub-
phase is insignificant, because they are
merely involved as a resource (which
will have a significant role in the next
sub-phase).
The following sections will further
discuss the role and importance of
each phase and sub-phase in the ap-
pearing-disappearing process of trader
space in the mosque courtyard.

5.3.1. Preparation: Setting-up

process
The aim of the preparation phase is
to set up two basic requirements that
are crucial to executing the following
phase ((de)territorialization), namely
(1) the availability of resources, and (2)
the availability of spatial position. This
phase is then divided into two sub-
phases, supplying resources and occupy-
ing a position.
The aim of the ‘supplying resourc-
es’ sub-phase is to condition the avail-
ability of a certain set of entities as
(additional) resources to form the
trader space. This sub-phase can be
performed by the traders themselves, Figure 6. Supplying resources (top image) and occupying a
or with help of a porter. If the traders position (bottom image) sub-phases of socks trader.

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 125

yard. This sub-phase, as previously process of deterritorialization. This

stated, can be performed simultane- phase is divided into four sub-phases:
ously with the process of supplying defining boundaries, the emergence of
resources. However, if in the previous identity, the disappearance of identity,
sub-phase trader utilizes the support and disassembling boundaries.
of a porter to tag or put a placeholder The ‘defining boundaries’ sub-phase
down for his/her spatial-position, then aims to form a relation between sup-
that trader will occupy the tagged-po- porting components, which differen-
sition in this sub-phase (figure 6-bot- tiate the area of trader space from the
tom image). others. The supporting component
is one that defines the quality of the
5.3.2. (De)Territorialization: The space (figure 7). For instance, a compo-
appearing-disappearing process nent with a spatial role as a ‘boundary’
(De)territorialization is the phase provides quality in the form of ‘clarity’
in which the trader space appears regarding the area of the trader space.
through the process of territorializa- Different entities can act as support-
tion, and then disappears through the ing components with the same spa-
tial role, albeit with different levels of
quality (depending on the properties
of the entities). Beside components
with spatial roles as ‘boundaries’, there
are also components with other spatial
roles such as ‘place to display’ or ‘sitting
place’, but all play a role in ‘defining’ the
trader space and differentiating it from
its surroundings.
‘Emergence of identity’ is a sub-
phase in which the identity of space
(as a trader space) emerges through
relation-interaction between the main
components of the space. The main
component is one whose presence,
and relation-interaction with other
main components, plays a crucial role
in the emergence of the identity of
certain architectural space. This space
can temporarily appear, even in an in-
compatible built environment, if the
relation-interaction between the main
components can be formed in the en-
vironment. For instance, trader space
can appear in the courtyard through
the relation-interaction between ‘sell-
er’, ‘goods’, and ‘(potential) buyer’ (fig-
ure 8). However, unlike supporting
components, these main components
require specific entities that cannot be
easily replaced. For example, all traders
has specific entities that they can use as
goods to sell. These entities cannot be
easily replaced by others because they
are tied to the social and spatial posi-
tion of the trader.
‘Disappearance of identity’ is a sub-
phase in which the identity of the space
disappears because there is a change
Figure 7. Defining boundaries sub-phase of men’s clothes trader in the relation-interaction between
(top image) and socks trader (bottom image). the main components. For example,

From rigidity to ephemerality: Architecture as a socio-spatial assemblage of heterogeneous

components
126

when the peak time of the bazaar is

over, the traders need to disassemble
their space. This disassembling process
starts by dismantling the arrangement
of the goods and then storing them in
a certain place or parcel/package. In
other words, there is a change in the
relation-interaction that involves par-
ticular entities changing from ‘being
displayed’ (as goods) to ‘being stored’
(as resources in a parcel/package).
Traders disassemble their space by
dismantling the relation between the
goods and the place of display, and
then gathering and storing the goods
in a certain package.
The process that takes place in the
‘disassembling boundaries’ sub-phase
is similar to the ‘disappearance of iden-
tity’ sub-phase, in the sense that there
is a change that leads to a relation-in-
teraction that accumulates a group of
items/entities into the form of package.
This relation between entities in the
form of a package makes them easier
for the actors to move or mobilize from
the courtyard.

5.3.3. Withdrawal: Cleaning-up

process
The withdrawal phase is the oppo-
site of the preparation phase. The main
aim of this phase is to ‘clean up’ the
built environment and return it to its
default condition. Therefore, this phase
strengthens the argument about the
temporal availability of resources that
are required to form the architectural
space. The withdrawal phase is divided
into two sub-phases, positional with- Figure 8. Emergence of identity sub-phase of men’s clothes trader
drawal and resources withdrawal. (top image) and accessories trader (bottom image).
‘Positional withdrawal’ is the sub-
phase in which the traders, who initi- area), to return the built environment
ate the formation of trader space in the completely to its default condition.
courtyard, leave their spatial position.
Some traders perform the positional 6. Conclusion and recommendation
and resources withdrawal simultane- This study has addressed the hetero-
ously, which means that they take all geneity of entities involved as compo-
the resources with them when they nents of architectural space, and how
leave their position. Other traders, they affect the ephemerality of the
who utilize the support of a porter in space. An architectural space becomes
the preparation phase, only take some ephemeral when some of the entities
of the resources and leave the rest in that act as its components are only, and
the built environment. ‘Resources should be, available/present in a partic-
withdrawal’, on the other hand, is the ular time-frame. This means it is nec-
sub-phase in which the porters move/ essary to extend the recognition of the
mobilize the remaining resources to components that form an architectural
another location (inside the mosque space beyond the permanent physical

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 127

structure of the built environment. ration should be based on the contex-

This recognition indeed suggests a lim- tual situation of the design, specifically
itation of this physical structure, but it related to: (1) the variety of everyday
also provides an idea about the variety uses or activities (that require a certain
and wider range of entities that could set of main components); and (2) the
act as architectural components. level of spatial quality to support these
The findings of the study reveal the activities (which is affected by the sup-
importance of everyday items, such as porting components). This approach
clothes, plastic carpets and umbrellas, opens the possibility to simplify the
in the formation of architectural space. physical structure of the built environ-
This argument does not try to negate ment, without reducing the complexi-
or eliminate the importance of perma- ty of architectural space. The physical
nent physical structures in the built en- structure of the built environment can
vironment. Instead, both types of en- be simpler because the availability of
tity (the physical structure of the built other resources has been ‘distributed’
environment and everyday items) are to other parties.
resources that are required to form cer- However, the availability of these
tain architectural space. The difference resources is useless if the actors are
is that physical structure is permanent- unable to utilize them through a pro-
ly available, while everyday items are cess of spatial assemblage. The findings
only available temporarily, and there reveal the importance of social assem-
is process that involves a certain group blage as non-physical structure that
of actors that needs to be performed to frames this spatial assemblage process.
condition the availability of these items. Therefore, social assemblage plays a
However, the importance of these enti- crucial role in the ephemerality of an
ties cannot be seen through their being architectural space, because it frames
separate individual entities. Instead, the actualization of actors’ capacities
it needs to be seen through their spa- that are required to perform the spa-
tial role as architectural components, tial assemblage process, but only in a
whether as a main component (which specific time-frame. This social assem-
determines the identity of the space) or blage adds a non-physical layer that
supporting component (which deter- can affect the flexibility/rigidity of the
mines the quality of the space). built environment without changing its
A combination of the ideas of re- physical features. This finding therefore
sources, main components and sup- suggests the necessity for architects to
porting components can be used to become involved in the formulation of
develop an alternative approach to rules and regulations (as the elements
overcoming the rigidity issue of the of this social assemblage). Similar to
built environment. This issue is pri- the previous argument about the rec-
marily related to the inability or lim- ognition of the importance of everyday
itation of the built environment to re- items, this involvement opens up wider
spond to change in everyday uses. This options in the design approach of ar-
limitation is related to the fact that the chitects, rather than a mere focus on
features or elements of the built envi- the physical structure of the built en-
ronment are only part of the resources vironment.
that are required to form the architec- This research is limited to the con-
tural space. It is therefore necessary text of a certain event in a particular
to fully recognize this limitation and type of public area, specifically a mar-
open it up to an alternative approach, ket/bazaar event in the courtyard of
one that suggests that architects act Sunda Kelapa mosque. Investigation
more as ‘resources managers’ than as in different cases is needed to further
‘form makers’. explore and develop the conceptual ar-
As a resources manager, an architect guments that have been made in this
can explore the resources that need to study. Research in different contexts
be permanently available, and those with a more diverse set of activities is
that are only available in a specific required to develop a framework to
condition (in which their availability understand the ephemerality of archi-
depends on other parties). This explo- tectural space in everyday life. Such

From rigidity to ephemerality: Architecture as a socio-spatial assemblage of heterogeneous

components
128

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built environment. Golafshani, N. (2003). Understand-
ing Reliability and Validity in Qualita-
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From rigidity to ephemerality: Architecture as a socio-spatial assemblage of heterogeneous

components