Application of a Biomimetic Approach in the Design Exploration of the Indonesian Red Cross Memorial Covid 19 Volunteer Monument, Tangerang Regency

Abstract

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Covid-19) has been declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) and a national disaster by the Indonesian government since March 2020. The high speed of the virus' spread has caused an enormous multidimensional crisis in terms of health, social, and economic aspects all over the world, including Indonesia. As of May 8, 2023, Covid-19 has infected 6,787,354 people, with 161,459 of them having died. Among the many victims, there are also many volunteers who have fallen while serving the community in dealing with the pandemic. To commemorate the fallen volunteers, the Indonesian Red Cross of Tangerang Regency plans to immortalize them through a monument in the Solear area, Tangerang Regency, Banten. This monument is intended as a place to remember the fallen volunteers for their families, colleagues, and the public. The Architecture Student Association (Gamatara) of UPH had the opportunity to contribute their design ideas in the framework of community service. The approach used in developing the design of this monument is biomimetic. Biomimetic architecture is defined as the science and art of designing buildings by imitating aspects of nature as examples, models, references, and guidelines for solving problems in architecture. In the design of this monument, biomimetic is applied to make nature an inspiration for form. This approach is used as the actualization of the symbol that the way to prevent pandemics like this in the future is through harmonization with nature. This approach can be seen as the application of metaphor, prioritizing conceptual and visual synergy. The bamboo shoot shape was chosen as an appropriate metaphor that depicts resilience and the emergence of new hope. The design exploration is directed towards combining the form and the resulting spatial experience to create a sense of place and a meditative reflection space that supports activities.