Architecture of Kuala Lumpur

The architecture of Kuala Lumpur is a blend of old colonial influences, Asian traditions, Malay Islamic inspirations, modern and post modern mix.Being a relatively young city, most of Kuala Lumpur's colonial buildings were built toward the end of 19th and early 20th century.These buildings have Moorish, Tudor, Neo-Gothic or Grecian-Spanish style or architecture. Most of the styling have been modified to cater to use local resources and the acclimatized to the local climate, which is hot and humid all year around.

Independence coupled with the rapid economic growth from the 70's to the 90's, allows buildings with more local and Islamic motif arise in the middle of the city. Many of these buildings derive their design from traditional Malay items such as the head dress and the keris. Some of these buildings have Islamic geometric motifs integrated with the designs of the building.

Late Modernist and Post Modernist style architecture began to be seen in the late 90's and early 2000s. Buildings with all glass shell appears around the city, with the most prominent example being the Petronas Twin Towers. As a developing city in a developing nation, the city skyline is expected to change in decades to come with construction works like The Gardens, The Pavilion, Four Seasons Place, Lot C of KLCC and many more.

Neo Moorish (Mughal)

Building with Neo Moorish or Mughal architecture were built at the turn of the 20th century by the colonial power, Great Britain. While most of the buildings with such architecture are in Dataran Merdeka, there are some in Chinatown such as the Jamek Mosque and in Jalan Sultan Hishamuddin, such as the KTM railway station and the KTM Administration Office. Famous buildings in the neo-Moorish style includes Sultan Abdul Samad Building, the Court of Appeals and the old Kuala Lumpur High Court. All the buildings mention before are within the Dataran Merdeka area. Other buildings with Moorisha rchitecture are Bandaraya Theatre, Info Kraft (Textile Museum), Kuala Lumpur Memorial Library, National History Museum and the old Sessions and Magistrates Courts before it was moved to Jalan Duta.

There are many buildings built by the British at the turn of the 20th century that spots Victorian and Tudor influence in their designs. The building are modified to acclimatize with the tropical environment of Malaysia, which is hot and humid with many days of monsoon rain.

Tudor styled architecture is the feature of two sporting clubs situated in Dataran Merdeka, the Royal Selangor Club and the Selangor Chinese Club. The buildings were built in 1910 and 1929 respectively. The architectural style, which features large exposed wooden beams in half-timbered walls, was the typical model for some of the earliest social club buildings in the country^[1].

Neo-Gothic architecture exists in religious building built by the colonial powers such as the St. Mary's Cathedral, St Andrew’s Presbyterian Church , Church of the Holy Rosary and St.John's Church which is converted into Bukit Nanas Community Center. However, some residence such as Carcosa Seri Negara, which was built in1897 for Frank Swettenham also features this style of architecture.

Victorian architecture is also a popular choice for the colonial powers to build school which such examples like Victoria Institution, Methodist Boys’ School and Convent Bukit Nanas.Other examples of building with this kind of architecture include the Central Market, National Art Gallery, Malaysia Tourism Center,Industrial Court Building, The Mansem, PAM Center (housing the Malaysian Institute of Architects) and Coliseum Theatre

                       

St. Mary's Cathedral, Kuala Lumpu    Central Market                                Royal Selangor Club                      Coliseum Theater
 

Grecian-Spanish

Prior to the Second World War, many shop houses,usually two story with functional shops on the ground floor and separate residential spaces upstairs, were built around the old city center. These shop-houses drew inspiration from Straits Chinese and European traditions.^[2][3] in Some of these shop-houses have made way for new developments but there are still many standing today around Medan Pasar (Old Market Square), Chinatown, Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, Jalan Doraisamy, Bukit Bintang and Tengkat Tong Shin areas.St. John’s Institution Bukit Nanas is famous of its imposing white and red brick building with emphasis on Grecian-Spanish style of architecture. The Telecom Museum, which was built in 1928 also sports the influence.

The Secondary Boy's branch of St John's Institution on Bukit Nanas.

Shop houses in  Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman.

Facade of the shop houses.

Eng Choon Assembly Hall built in 1930 on Jalan Ampang.