The Southern Chinese Eclectic Style Wall Floral Ornamentation of Sun Yat Sen Mainsion, George Town, Penang

Abstract

The Sun Yat Sen Mansion, located in the Armenian Street historic district of George Town, Penang, is a shophouse that has been meticulously transformed into a Peranakan private museum. The building has its own history, which stems from Dr. Sun Yat Sen's involvement with the Chinese revolutionary movement. Despite the fact that Sun Yat Sen is regarded as one of the greatest leaders in contemporary China, his political career was marked by continual conflict and repeated exile. Sun Yat Sen Mansion is one example of an architectural heritage building with beautiful ornamentations of Straits Settlement shophouses. Shophouses and townhouses are listed under UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, possess unique architectural and cultural characteristics. The building is influenced by the Southern Chinese Eclectic Style (1840s–1900s), where Chinese masons contributed their methods and supplies. Additionally, ornamental details and ventilation holes have been added. Ornamentation such as floral and fauna has been applied to this building's facade to create eye-catching colours, making for an appreciative sight in these buildings with their own philosophy. Peranakan shophouses with beautiful wall floral ornamentation can be found in Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, and Thailand; however, there is still no documentation based on the philosophy of wall floral ornamentation as references. This paper investigates the floral ornamentation wall motif in façade design and analyses the philosophy of the floral ornamentation on the Sun Yat Sen Mansion. This building has interesting ornamentation that will influence the Southern Chinese eclectic style philosophy. Through the utilization of the Sun Yat Sen Museum as a case study, this inquiry employs a qualitative research methodology to gather data and comprehend wall floral ornamentations that influence the eclectic southern Chinese style. Based on this research, the findings provide an understanding of the philosophy of wall floral ornamentation influences that govern the design of architectural characteristics and façade design on Sun Yat Sen Mansion.