The Meaning of Local and Non-Local Architectural Components in the Gedung Sate, Bandung

Abstract

The combination of local and non-local architectural components is often found in colonial buildings throughout the Nusantara region. One of the architectural historical legacies is the Gedung Sate, which was the Office of the Department of Public Works or Verkeer en Waterstaat during the Dutch East Indies Government. This building is the result of a synthesis of local and non-local architectural components that are combined in function, climatologically expression, and distinctive form, which is then referred to as the form of Indisch architecture. This architectural variety is a combination of modern architectural varieties in the Dutch East Indies colonial era with traditional Sudanese architectural varieties in West Java. This is in line with Peirce's semiotics (in Zoest, 1978), which defines architecture as a sign that signifies or represents something and divides signs into three types: icons, indexes, and symbols. A sign contains ideas and expressions that must be perceived, referred to, and interpreted. Signs have three interrelated dimensions, forming a triangle of function, form, and meaning. This study aims to reveal the extent to which local and non-local architectural components in the Gedung Sate are interpreted using Peirce's semiotics, within the triangle of function, form, and meaning. This research was conducted using qualitative methods through observation, exploration, analysis, and interpretation. This research is beneficial for architectural education in examining the meaning of the form of an architectural work with a local identity and developing methods for analyzing the meaning of colonial architectural forms in cities left over from the Dutch East Indies.