CULTURAL SIGNIFICANCE IDENTIFICATION OF MODERN ARCHITECTURAL HERITAGE

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to identify cultural significance of the vocational education project at 25 schools in Thailand designed by Sakakura architects & engineers in 1965-1970. Each school includes various types of buildings and they have been used nearly 50 years. Some of them need to be changed tomeet new needs. Before making changes, significance ofarchitectural components should be identified. However, there is not sufficient research about architectural characteristics to access their significance. The methodology of this study is using the identification processes of cultural significance in the Madrid Document 2014. The results showed that cultural significance of the buildings in this project can be grouped into three categories: 1) attributes and values of cultural significance specifically designed for this project, 2) attributes and values of cultural significance originally created by Sakakura and usually appeared inmany ofhis works and 3) attributes and values ofcultural significance influenced by Le Corbusier when Sakakura worked with him. These three categories of cultural significance seem to be components of the authenticity and integrity ofthis project’s buildings. Applying comparative analysis ofthe MadridDocument 2014 can enable us to entirely understand i) significant cultural elements and its origin, ii) the reasons why such elements should be conserved and iii) how conservation technique should be applied in order to provide appropriate conservation in the future.