LAN DIN

captures the attention of passersby at dusk with its illuminated space radiating through the translucent polycarbonate walls. The team of architects from Sher Maker intended for the building, to act as the area’s new visual landmark, especially with its luminescent presence at night.

There are several conditions that Patcharada Inplang and Thongchai Chansamak of Sher Maker considered when they were working on the design, such as the limited construction costs as the café is built on a short-term leased land that caused the design team to choose locally available materials with moderate prices, to the preservation of the original tree growing on the land. The latter resulted in the building’s floor plan that is designed to physically coexist with the large timbers as the program makes the best use of the greeneries’ expansive branches and the shade they provide to the functional spaces. In addition, the building is designed to house an over 100-square-meter outdoor space, nicely surrounded by the luscious foliage, which is a considerably large ratio compared to the 60-70 square meter interior space of the café.

Working directly with ‘Sala’ or the northern local builders without hiring any contractors is another method Sher Maker went with in an attempt to control the construction costs. While most of these local builders possess great carpentry skills, they are forced to work with industrial materials as the collaborative experimentation between the design team and ‘Sala’ includes the most efficient use of materials. Such experiment corresponds with Sher Maker’s design principles, which position themselves as a maker studio with a keen interest in taking an experimental approach toward materials and techniques. They are driven to be an integral part of the actual production of their design.