In celebration of the selection of candidates for the Thesis of the Year (TOY) and Student’s Design Competition (SDC) of the Architects Regional Council Asia (ARCASIA) 2025 by the Association of Indonesian Schools of Architecture (APTARI) and the Indonesian Institute of Architects (IAI), the Undergraduate Architecture Program, Department of Architecture and Planning, Faculty of Engineering, Universitas Gadjah Mada is organizing the TOY & SDC ARCASIA Indonesia 2025 Exhibition. The exhibition showcases 13 TOY finalists and 10 SDC finalists who were selected through a two-stage process: at the regional level by APTARI and at the national level by IAI. As the initiator of this exhibition, IAI appointed the Undergraduate Architecture Programs at 14 universities in Indonesia, including Universitas Gadjah Mada, to host the TOY and SDC ARCASIA 2025 Exhibition representing Indonesia from July 7 to August 8, 2025. Specifically at UGM’s Undergraduate Architecture Program, the exhibition is extended until mid-August 2025 to welcome the incoming class of 2025. In conducting this exhibition, IAI required each program to present the works anonymously to ensure the integrity of the Asian-level jury process, while also designing an exhibition that reflects the uniqueness of each university.
In collaboration with the Architecture Student Association (KMTA) Wiswakharman, UGM’s Undergraduate Architecture Program designed the exhibition using a composition of stool boxes, a hallmark of the Studio, framing two displays of posters for the SDC and TOY works. Each display includes a QR code that can be scanned to view the posters in greater detail. Additionally, the stool boxes were arranged as seating areas for visitors to relax while viewing the exhibition, connected by red and gray stripes resembling a zebra crossing aligned with the displays. The dominant square-shaped elements in red and orange reflect the identity of UGM’s Architecture campus, long known as the “Red Brick Campus” since its early days at the mBarek Campus. By utilizing modular stool boxes as existing Studio furniture and minimizing excessive paper use for poster printing, the exhibition design supports sustainability by avoiding significant disposable materials, thereby reducing potential waste that may result from conventional methods. More broadly, the exhibition contributes to the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 11 – Sustainable Cities and Communities.
The exhibition is also strategically located at the northern entrance of the Department of Architecture and Planning, Faculty of Engineering, UGM. Students, lecturers, staff, and visitors can easily access it. Thus, the exhibition enables an engaging form of informal architectural learning to be experienced by the public, aligning with Sustainable Development Goals 4 – Quality Education and 9 – Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure.
Reported and captured by Nisrina Amalia Paramanindya