By Pen Sereypagna

This project maps the genealogy of Bassac area, Phnom Penh as a community based, participatory exercise. A key objective is to discover ways to visualize the differences of urban form rather than continuities, and the characteristics of urban ruptures through various historical eras.

The mapping exercise takes place within and is informed by the artistic community of the White Building, currently under threat of demolition. The project aims to learn what exists now at Bassac, and what was in the past, creating a new dialogue which can serve as a basis for ideas about the future of the city. Bassac is a city of memory; how can this be visualized, as expressed in the city’s changing urban forms?

Mapping genealogy of urban form will contribute as an informative data for artists, architects, urbanists and local people to understand the city through taking the White Building as a metaphor of urban change through periods. The project will also engage with the White Building community by encouraging them to participate and interact in the mapping progress.