Andrew Lai is an architectural designer. He enjoys exploring sensory-focused designs that marry pragmatism and ecological philosophy, and he aims to create buildings that make a meaningful impact on the community they are part of. He completed his undergraduate degree at Liverpool John Moores University and has worked in Tokyo and Taipei. In his spare time, he enjoys sketching, woodworking, and gardening.
Andrew Lai
This project investigates the Milton Keynes Shopping Centre, an iconic piece of modernist architecture built in one of the largest post-war new towns in the UK.
The research begins with the utopian socialist planning of Milton Keynes, in the form of a grid road system and extremely dense tree plantings. This initial design came into being as it was a period of so-called ‘nanny-state’, where New Town Acts were passed to relocate the bombed-out neighbourhoods into newly built towns outside of London’s green belt.
However, with the Conservative Party returning to power with Margaret Thatcher at the helm, and the increasing prevailing free-market ideals, the centre of Milton Keynes became a shopping centre with the city squares inside it. Over the years, the centre performed well, but only as a shopping district - this is evident from the addition of three new major extensions to further attract consumers.
In the last 15 years of living here, I have always felt that Milton Keynes is a city without a core. Everything is so pre-determined and prescribed that even the cows are set in concrete. This feeling made me revisit the original socialist planning of the grid road and the forest city, where buildings could not be taller than trees, and the trees are so densely covered that many today seeks landmark structures. Today, even with the good maintenance over the years, the only thing that remains of the original idea of "forests" is patches of trees divided by the grid road, restricting the wildlife and eco-systems to these isolated patches.
My investigation into the historical development of Milton Keyes led to the proposal of transforming the symbolic forest city to a more authentic and engaging one, by reconstructing certain grid roads into wildlife corridors to recall the ancient forests. And the city centre, once named as the cathedral of consumerism, will not only be used for support and research for the urban wildlife corridor, but will also become a garden centre for local residents, creating an alternative to consumerist capitalism with elements of engagement and participation.
