PHTAA forms elegant white arches for aube wedding avenue in bangkok

located in suburban bangkok, PHTAA has completed the design of ‘aube wedding avenue’ – a large ceremony and events space that intends to mix traditional customs with contemporary architecture. with its pared-back aesthetic, the distinguishing feature of the building lies in the grand archways that lead guests to the engagement room. called the ‘khan maak’ walkway, this element is embedded in thai culture as a pre-engagement procession to celebrate a person’s transition from one status to another.

all images courtesy of PHTAA living design 

traditionally situated outside the bride’s house, the groom and his party must pass through ‘golden’ or ‘silver gates’ (string barriers held by the bridal party) in order to reach the bride-to-be. as a reinterpretation of the ‘khan maak’, PHTAA has designed an outdoor procession space under grand arches. this walkway is a symbol of the village street where the groom and his party can be seen by neighbors. the sense of movement is heightened by the screening of some spaces between columns to hide the view of the procession from the exterior. 

considering its location, the new intervention by PHTAA has been designed to be low in scale and self-contained. upon arrival, guests wait in a gallery space displaying photographs of the couple. literally a green room, this space acts as a transition from the outside world. the two principle internal spaces are the main (wedding) hall and engagement hall. the main hall holds 290 people and sits free-standing in a courtyard surrounded on three sides by a u-shaped cloistered structure which allows for under-cover circulation and the inclusion of auxiliary rooms. the engagement hall holds 150 people and is separated from the main hall by the ‘bouquet throwing’ courtyard.

weddings in thailand have become an opportunity for photographing the event as much as the celebration itself. the building therefore tries to reconcile this attitude by balancing between being a stage for photography and a space that enhances an authentic experience. use of white curved walls has the practical advantage of mimicking the walls of a photographic studio to be used either as a blank canvas, aided by diffused light from the skylights, or with the play of light and shadows formed by the curved geometry on the elevations.

to create a more contemporary architectural language in departure from a traditional church setting, the arches of the khan maak walkway and cloistered courtyard are deconstructed to half-arch modular elements and reformed after rotating on different axes. the effect is a snaking ceiling of white concrete. in terms of construction elements, the khan maak walkway utilizes expanded polystyrene foam carving and plaster to form the white curvy continuous shape, while elsewhere the sculptural look is achieved using white sand-wash finished concrete

the theme of the arch and the curved wall is repeated inside the building in various forms, including the sculptural staircase in the courtyard, from where the bride throws her bouquet. the arches forming both the exterior wall of the main hall and the cloistered structure overlap each other, again creating a feeling of movement. the curves are scaled down in the cornice of the arch-shaped skylights in the ceiling of the main hall and this cornicing element is re-appropriated as the finish to the wall behind the stage. curved walls and cut-outs, along with soft curtains, create a memorable, sensual space, which is reflected in the building’s name, aube, meaning ‘hug’.

project info:

project name: aube wedding avenue

location: bangkok, thailand

design: PHTAA living design 

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: lynne myers | designboom