The exhibition on deCoding Asian Urbanism is designed as a choreographed journey that engages the visitor through a series of experiences: Provocation, Immersion, Curiosity, Serenity, Inquiry, Discovery, and Memory. The journey leads the visitor through evocative films that immerse the visitor in the pulsating, hyperdense, intensity of the Asian City. The sequence continues through a more cerebral illustration of data about the size and density revealing the astounding density of major Asian cities. Visitors arrive at a quiet place of serenity surrounded by imagery of ancient civilizations before continuing the journey to discover transformational projects that act as urban acupuncture to revitalize, renew, and transform the complex urban fabric. 

The purpose of deCoding Asian Urbanism is to highlight how these creative projects that are designed for a specific place and purpose can stimulate large-scale transformations of their extended communities. The examples by some of the world’s leading designers; Charles Correa of India, Ken Yeang of Malaysia, Steven Holl of New York, and numerous others are situated through the lens of urban acupuncture. 

The project is curated by British historian Professor Kenneth Frampton, Malaysian ecologist, and architect Ken Yeang, and Los Angeles-based architect and urban designer Farooq Ameen. It builds on multi-year collaborations with the Art Center College of Design, the Bengal Foundation, and Harvard University.  

The project’s decade-long effort and research are memorialized in the accompanying 458-page publication that includes the work of prominent sociologists, architects, historians, urban designers, and activists from across the globe, each providing a unique perspective on the complexity of the contemporary city. Extensively illustrated with project images, analytical diagrams, maps, and selected photographs, it includes excerpts of spirited panel discussions from a symposium at Harvard University.