Eleena Jamil Architect’s Exploration of Bamboo to Construct a “Bamboo Playhouse”

Eleena Jamil Architect (EJA) is a Malaysian architecture studio known for exploring the experiential potential of form, material, and construction and for caring about environmental, social, and economic sustainability. In 2015, EJA experimented with bamboo as the main material for the Bamboo Playhouse project at Perdana Botanical Gardens. The pavilion is located on the edge of a small island surrounded by a lake in one of the biggest lungs of Kuala Lumpur.

Bamboo Playhouse by Eleena Jamil Architect (cr: Eleena Jamil Architect)

Bamboo on the edge of a small island (cr: Eleena Jamil Architect)

Malaysia has almost 50 species of bamboo, 25 of which are indigenous. Some types actually have thick stem walls, so they are strong enough to be used as structural elements. Even so, the use of bamboo in construction was not widely practiced in Malaysia at that time. Therefore, EJA chose bamboo.

Stilt structure (cr: Eleena Jamil Architect)

Section (cr: Eleena Jamil Architect)

Bamboo Playhouse has been established since 2015, and after almost 10 years, this pavilion has succeeded in demonstrating the sustainability of bamboo as a building material. The country's first formal bamboo structure was inspired by rural Malaysia's “wakaf” stilt structures.

The concrete columns supporting the platforms (cr: Eleena Jamil Architect)

Bamboo poles that branch like a tree (cr: Eleena Jamil Architect)

The bamboo configuration is arranged on a raised platform at different heights as if the wakafs were arranged side by side. The platforms are supported by concrete columns followed by bamboo poles that branch like a tree to support the roof covering from the center of each deck. The columns also support bamboo boxes as treehouses within the playhouse. Each joint of the bamboo structure is traditionally tied with black fibers.

Bamboo boxes as treehouses within the playhouse (cr: Eleena Jamil Architect)

Night view (cr: Eleena Jamil Architect)

Until now, the Bamboo Playhouse has been often visited by locals for various social and recreational activities, from children to adults. EJA hopes that the bamboo pavilion can last for another ten years.