Visit West Java : The New Face of City Square, Alun Alun Kejaksan, in Cirebon City.

 

Behind the reddish look of Alun Alun Kejaksan (Kejaksan Square) of  Cirebon City, West Java, there is a touch of the hands of the duo of Indonesian architects, Daliana & Florian, the founder of SHAU (Suryawinata Heinzelmann Architecture & Urbanism) in Rotterdam, the Netherlands and Bandung, Indonesia.

The collaboration of the husband and wife of the tough architect gave birth to the dashing square located in the heart of Cirebon City on Jalan Kartini, Kebonwaru District, Cirebon City which was inaugurated by the Governor of West Java Ridwan Kamil, Wednesday (21/4/2021).

The one hectare square has now become a magnet for Cirebon City residents to interact or do activities with a number of facilities such as a playground and a library there.The Cirebon Square Architect, Daliana, said that his party is interested in designing public spaces in Indonesia because residents need more well-designed public spaces, as well as to attract tourists to enjoy Cirebon Square," he explained.  

After the successful design of Taman Film and also Alun Alun Cicendo in Bandung, they were asked by the Provincial Government of West Java to design the Kejaksan Square."The process is through understanding the context, surveys, participatory FGDs with the city government and stakeholders, we do architectural designs in coordination with the Governor, Kang Emil until it is finally realized by the contractor through a tender," said Daliana.

For the SHAU architects, he continued, the philosophy contained in the design and exterior of Cirebon City Square originated from the inspiration of the gate of  Bentar Temple which they translated into a contemporary plaza. Plus, the location is very unique, surrounded by At-Taqwa Mosque, historical monuments, and there are also street vendors and bus stop access. There are steps for sitting around.

"The square is a public space for all, so there are various activities. But the main thing is the open field with grass and brick lines in the direction of the Qibla, the main gate, the memorial plaza to pay homage to the independence monument, the fountain plaza, the microlibrary temple. which is a reading park, street vendor shelter, playground, and parking lot especially for mosques, "said Daliana.

The red brick material is used to match the color of  Bentar Temple which they refer to. Besides that, it also feels familiar to Cirebon residents.On the other hand, Daliana admitted that there were difficulties and challenges in designing the Square."The difficulty and challenge is that the AGO is very important for all and its location is strategic, so there are lots of requests from various parties," he said.

For example, he continued, mosques require parking and a green open space of at least 30 percent which is achieved, as well as the need for public spaces with various activities ranging from playing, reading, to plazas that need to be designed very well.According to him, the Plaza Memorial is designed to involve the participation of local historians and cultural observers. He admitted that the basement was a challenge in itself. Arrangement of street vendors on site is also needed.

"So the design of the Kejaksan Square is actually quite complex. But it all paid off because we are happy that the Provincial Government and Cirebon City Government have always supported it well," he said.The rest, after the inauguration of the Kejaksan Square Daliana hopes that the residents are willing to protect the Kejaksan Square very well. Daliana also hopes that the Cirebon City Government is willing to pay attention and budget to take good care of it.

To note, Florian and Daliana are a couple of architects, founders of SHAU in Rotterdam, the Netherlands and Bandung, Indonesia. Daliana - an Indonesian female architect who is the Architizer version of '100 Women in Architecture 2021' - has her undergraduate education in Jakarta, while Florian - a German architect - has his undergraduate education in Munich, Germany. They both studied Masters in Berlage, Rotterdam, the Netherlands before establishing SHAU together.

This year SHAU received the Archdaily Building of the Year award 2021. Several other achievements include the Architizer A + Award 2020 & 2017, as well as the Aga Khan Award 2019 shortlist.

Source : A Jounalism report by Aisyah Mulyawati, a Journalist and Traveler.