Reconsidering Shophouse Architecture for Contemporary Times

Abstract

The shophouses were the elegant buildings that lined along the Sri Lankan streets from the past. The very fact that the shophouses and their proportions contribute to the growth of the evolution of tropical architecture is phenomenal feature. The shophouse is a development of the basic house from in Sri Lanka, it is not a new, alienated concept, and instead the basic house form has evolved to cater needs of the society during the different periods of history. These buildings are used for both the commercial and residential purposes. However, in the contemporary world these shophouses are diminishing in number and there need to be efforts done to preserve this beautiful historic building. This research investigates on the manner in which the evolution of the shophouse architecture is appreciated-the traditional and the modern variant of the shophouse is examined through a typo-morphological architectural analysis, as they justify the new urbanism principles when designing cities. Thus, proving that the shophouses can be reconsidered as it has evolved for contemporary times in creating sustainable townships.