Identifying Attributes and Cultural Significance for Recommendation on Developing Heritage Assessment Tool: A Case Study of Art Deco Shophouses in Yaowarat and Songwat Areas

Abstract

Art Deco Architecture, one of the multiple modernities in early 20th century heritage, emerged as a transitional style between historicism and modernism. Despite once being a globally popular movement between the 1920s and 1930s in the West and until the 1950s in the East, Art Deco Architecture now faces adaptation without proper value recognition and understanding. This study aims to understand this architectural value by identifying its attributes and cultural significance for recommendations on developing heritage assessment tool.

The research focuses on Art Deco Shophouses in the Yaowarat and Songwat areas. Employ a framework that utilizes a value-based conservation approach, supported by international Art Deco data, to establish attribute criteria for field surveys. These criteria consist of setting, interior space, form and façade, structure and materials, architectural and decorative elements, use, and social association.

The inventory of shophouses in the study areas listed 35 buildings and selected 4 case studies for field surveys. The findings conclude that the attributes of setting, use, and association convey distinctive scientific significance as evidence of the development of modern Chinese society in Bangkok (1930s-1950s). The attribute of fabric demonstrates both architectural and social significance, which reflects the progress of design and construction, local preferences, and adaptability to its surrounding context. Finally, a recommendation for developing a tool to identify attributes and assess significance suggests integrating holistic aspects from setting, fabric, use, and association and considering diverse contextual and temporal conditions that influence the diverse expression of Art Deco in each area.