GDP Architects Sarah Merican on 35 years of Malaysian architecture and design legacy

As GDP Architects marks 35 years, how has the firm’s interpretation of “group, design, partnership” evolved from its founding principles to its current practice?

Much like any design practice or outfit, GDP Architects wasn’t founded on the seriousness of founding principles or anything so fundamentally unchangeable. The way we’d like to recall our beginnings is simply through the pivotal banding of our enthusiastic and energetic founders and the ideas they had towards architecture and the countless possibilities that came with pursuing it.

Today, although many might not recall what the “GDP” of GDP Architects actually stands for, the three words that make up our initials point to our ethos as much as they are our day-to-day culture. We find strength in the group and carry out design under the umbrella of the partnership. In that sense, as much as we have grown exponentially in size, GDP was borne out of the spirit of collectivism — I believe that we did and continue to do our best to retain this core value.

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The exhibition describes GDP’s story as “shaped by many voices over three and a half decades.” How has this collective approach influenced your leadership style as a Partner?

When I joined GDP, coming up to almost a decade ago, I, like most young architects, came in with the unbridled enthusiasm to, for lack of a better word, “show what I was made of”. Upon entering GDP, I was soon humbled, not just by its sheer size, but by how much it takes to put projects of a certain magnitude together. That, aside from brushing up on my skills and know-how, my attitude towards collaboration and teamwork across various personalities had quickly shifted from the idea of being “the architect” to that of a team player.

Now, as a partner and head of a small but special unit, I try my best to balance the more individual responsibilities that come with my position, whilst working closely with my team to address the bigger opportunities presented to us as a larger collective. I do believe that if everyone puts in their best effort in being a team player and doing their best, great things can happen. I’ve had the privilege of being witness and party to it in this practice, time and time again.

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GDP Campus serves as both the venue and the subject matter for this exhibition. What does this new space represent for the firm’s future, and how does architecture, as both container and content, reflect your design philosophy?

GDP Campus is quite simply a culmination of the design language that we’ve exercised over the several offices we have resided in from 1990 until now. In all of our offices, we have tried and tested things, from design details to even loose furniture; In many ways, it actually is simultaneously both the subject and the container in which we apply as well as exercise our desire to design.

What GDP Campus offers, as opposed to the spread of several satellite offices we used to previously inhabit, is the sense of feeling complete — feeling altogether as one. What we hope to gain in being all under one roof, is renewed synergy between design studios and subsequently, individuals; that by being altogether, we can better equip ourselves to take on new and upcoming challenges presented to us.

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GDP Campus represents a significant investment in creating a dedicated space for architectural discourse. How do you envision this campus fostering dialogue between the profession and the broader public?

We, GDP Architects, believe that design and design education, not solely limited to architecture, are not there to aid or enlighten specific classes or creeds of persons. On the contrary, design is a language that should be universally accessible and relatable to all. This is why we have created testing ground — a compilation of spaces located within GDP Campus where we can create as well as host such events such as Please, have a seat, a collaborative showcase we had last year in 2024 with Swiss family-owned furniture company, Vitra alongside Haus Living Concepts and now group, design partnership; celebrating our thirty-five years of design practice.

We hope by continuing to put forth these open-to-the-public exhibits that delve into the importance of design to the everyman, sturdier bridges can be built between, not just us, but various other design communities and beyond. Personally, I feel that by doing this, we get to share the privilege of knowledge in how we, as designers, were taught to appreciate design and how it plays an integral part in our everyday lives.

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 How has GDP Architects navigated the tension between global architectural trends and the distinctly Malaysian urban and cultural contexts over the past 35 years?

Looking back on our first thirty-five years, GDP Architects has navigated between shifting trends in relation to the Malaysian context by not being overly precious about falling into any specific categories, definitions and labels. Much like how we accept that there are varying tastes within the practice, we appreciate that Malaysia’s identity, too, lies in its multiplicity; that we are not singular but a people of variety.

In thinking this way and therefore naturally approaching the work this way, it has freed us from holding onto any ideals that may be imposed onto us. It is this attitude of open-mindedness which, I believe, has also allowed us to work with many collaborators from other parts of the world and has allowed us to grow in ways that we wouldn’t be able to without such exposure. I would also like to add that we are an office of ‘doers’, we are proponents of the mindset “If you never act, you’ll never learn”. 

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The exhibition aims to encourage “public reflection on how architecture shapes lives and cities.” In what specific ways do you believe GDP Architects’ work has shaped Malaysian urban life?

The exhibition centres on an array of projects selected from the first few years of GDP’s practice to those born in the not-so-distant past. Each has a context—their own milieu. More than just aesthetics, what each project truly does is that it mediates that important, real dialogue between the designer and the user.

This very dialogue not only takes place at the heart of the collective, but it is exactly what drives the collective. And most of the time, our user is the urban Malaysian user. The designer’s dialogue between the Malaysian user can only be a rich correspondence between the plurality of their habits, routines and aspirations, ever-changing. In this sense, it can be said that as our works continue to have this dialogue again and again as we respond to the changing pace of Malaysian urban life, so has the life of the urban Malaysian shaped our practice.

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The exhibition emphasises GDP Architects as a “collective story—built by many, for many.” How do you balance individual architectural vision with truly collaborative design processes?

Understandably, in a practice this large, there is a need to establish certain structures and hierarchies. However, in saying this, GDP, since the beginning, has always advocated to operate in a flat, collaborative environment; that everyone is made accessible to one another regardless of position.

This was important for us to be cognisant of so as to hone in our way of working, for vision and collaboration can only truly coexist, or more precisely, coalesce with the presence of mutual respect and recognition of each other's roles to play. In summary, architectural vision can only truly manifest through the incorporation of working well collaboratively — they are not mutually exclusive of one another.

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This is GDP Architects’ first-ever publication. What made this the right moment to document your practice, and what stories were you most eager to preserve?

The book, at first, like the exhibition, was first borne out of the exercise of first wanting to properly archive our practice. It soon evolved into this rather contemplative revisitation of how we came to be. In speaking with the many individuals across the practice, over the course of several interviews taking place alongside an almost archaeological dive into our past and present works— what ultimately surfaced was that what we wanted to convey was less of a full showcase of what we had done or achieved over the years but instead a well-timed message we’d like to share—that architecture is a product of people coming together in spite of our differences.

That in this increasingly divisive world, the success brought about by camaraderie prevails. We sifted this out quite early on in the process — that the intention of our first architectural publication would, moreover, not overly dwell on design philosophies pertaining to aesthetics and style, but one that captures the spirit of our architectural practice and its humaneness. The stories we were most eager to preserve are therefore the ones that belong to us and only us, unembellished and honest.

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The exhibition strikes a tone that is both reflective and “forward-looking.” What emerging challenges in Malaysian urbanism are you most excited to tackle in GDP Architects’ next chapter?

In reflecting upon our work, we recognise that within Malaysia still lies several opportunities for architecture to play a pivotal role for us Malaysians alike. We are also currently being affected by factors such as artificial intelligence, new typologies such as data centres and the ever-fluctuating sentiments that are both politically and economically driven. In bringing these factors up, we’d like to think that the approach of our next chapter would not deviate too greatly from how we have always practised: to be restless in our desire to stay abreast with what is up and coming and to remain open and ready to take on opportunities, with all the challenges that they may bring. 

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As cities across Southeast Asia grapple with rapid development, what role do you see GDP Architects playing in shaping more thoughtful, human-centred urban environments?

The list of what humans want and what humans need is often a contradictory one. The role that all architects play in shaping and improving human lives becomes all the more important: it is the responsibility that comes with the profession. And so, as a practice, to strike a balance between human needs and wants is always key. In this never-ending pursuit of our own in wanting to provide better spaces within the public realm for all to enjoy, we have also learned to balance our idealism with the very present realities that come with pursuing design in the face of our country’s development, as a way to remain relevant.

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