Brickfields
John Lambrichts
NETHERLANDS

Brickfields is one of the oldest and most traditional districts of Kuala Lumpur. An ultramodern Central Station opened in Brickfields, turning this suburb into the heart of the Malaysian capital.

With a new subway system and the high speed KLIA Express to the international airport, Brickfields is now linked with the rest of the city and the world.

The consequences have been enormous, for the culture and daily life among other things. Shanty towns and kampongs must give way to apartment complexes and street markets are replaced by modern shopping malls. The neighbourhood is a big construction pit where many illegals work.

Real estate prices and the cost of living are hard to keep up with. People who are vulnerable (small businessmen, homeless and drug addicts, prostitutes, the blind) face problems. The Malaysian Association For The Blind has its main building in Brickfields along the banks of the River Klang. Many blind people were trained to work as a masseur or masseuse and opened their own parlour in Brickfields. They’re in danger of losing their business now that rental prices have gone up.

A grant was provided by The Netherlands Foundation for Visual Arts, Design and Architecture to realize the Brickfields project.