According to the Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries, the notion of “space” can be read in several ways, of what is the five general understandings of it would be: outside earth’s atmosphere, empty area, period, freedom, and lastly, where things exist/move. With the speed, amount of information, and technology we are currently facing in the 21st century., it is no surprise that the idea of “space” is often correlated with the “space race,” “space tech,” even in the realm of architecture1. Given its vast and generic nature, it is essential, especially for this architectural research paper, to make a clear position on “space” or, to be more specific, something “spatial.” Architecture is indeed something of “spatial,” introduced by E. Moursund that a form of “spatial expression” that develops opportunities for humans to navigate, measure, anticipate, project, and construct perceptions; dictated by what architectural practitioner so-called “the language of space,” which consisted numerous spatial manipulative method and tool that help to shape our physical environment (Kasparowitz, 2017). Some great examples of “method” could be Architectural theory, education, or personal experience; as vague as it seems in comparison to “tools,” it could be almost anything creative and inspiring (or the other way); “tool” is more of a tangible object in our daily life that prevents or encourages a type of human behaviour, and as simple as it seems, some of the notable examples would be your bathroom door, living room windows, or partition walls that separate different functions; to demonstrate our knowledge and skill in both the “method” and “tool,” we draw, and to realize. Therefore, we build. The charm, speed, and impact of our panoptical creations encourage our egotistical profession to think that “space” stops where the site boundary of the plot of land ends. Fortunately (also, unfortunately), the domain of “space” does not end here; it also exists in what our optic and haptic sensibility cannot perceive; it is something else and, indeed, something more.
A truly cross-dimensional [Physical] research that explores and recognizes “space” that exists in another realm outside architecture. This realm of “space” and “spatial” would be the starting point of this research, asking the generic yet essential question of how people perceive the notion of “space”? Meanwhile, with the ambitious attempt to answer it by investigating the elements that compose “space” and something “spatial.” Next, the topic of “sensation” would also be discussed as a reaction and first tier of consequences generated by the composition of “space.” The third chapter of this research is the “Power of Architecture”; it could be seen as an attempt to show the inevitable influential power of our physical space and environment while simultaneously demonstrating the limitation of its “space.” The departure point of this research could be seen as another attempt to seek a common understanding from the audience that to create what we so-called the ideal “space,” we must first understand, study, and consider “space” from other realms cause only then “space” can be as meaningful, as functional, and pragmatic like they are all first intended to be.

With Hong Kong returning to China in 1997 after 156 years of British colonization, under the strong influences of regional politics, the neighboring town – Macao, soon followed this jurisdiction in 1999, making it the second “special administrative region” of China after Hong Kong, and the last Asia colony of Europe. After undergoing a rapid shifting of administrative and legal system change, Macao has experienced its peak of concentrating wealth and economy in the last two decades, backed by its intense gambling and entertainment industry. As a reaction to this economic phenomenon, Macao has eventually received titles like “Las Vegas of the East” and “Monte Carlo of the East” from the international market.

While celebrating the enormous wealth brought by the industry, the impacts that follow have fundamentally transformed the urban setting of Macao, including but not limited to the way people live, experience, local culture, and identity from the past. Furthermore, as this phenomenon has little connection and recognition by the local people, there has been limited research conducted regarding this topic.

This thesis will examine the urban history of Macao, the special administrative region, in chronological order, looking particularly into the two significant thresholds that shaped the urban development of the Macao SAR: 1st - The arrival of the Portuguese, 2nd the beginning of the casino era, thus, as Macao has such an unique typology that claimed only 32.9 kilometers square of land, which leads to a relatively small area of evaluation compared to the general understanding of “city.” As it concerns a limited area of studies, a longer study period would be more feasible for this thesis.