Adaptive reuse of colonial sugar factories in Java: Historical preservation and commodification of industrial heritage

This paper discusses the transformation of colonial sugar factories in Java as a contested space of historical preservation and commodification of industrial heritage through conservation-based tourism destinations by implementing adaptive reuse approach. Adaptive reuse is one of the methods in architectural design that aim to maintain historical value of heritage and create the building that is relevant to the current context in the age of globalisation. The paper argues that adaptive reuse should be implemented by balancing the aspect of preservation and commodification in order to not only generate a new consumerist space from the historical building host but also be able to maintain the continuity of histories and memories of the building. This research analyses four case studies of sugar factories in Java that have implemented adaptive reuse by comparing different strategies applied in each of their designs from the perspective of preservation and commodification. The result shows that the strategy of installation becomes the best practice for balancing preservation and commodification of industrial heritage in order to maintain building parts' authenticity and create historical atmosphere while considering inserting new elements to attract visitors as well as produce economic profit as a conservation-based tourism destination. Differences in commercial programs that were inserted into the building hosts of the factories also affect the degree of authenticity through the historical elements and atmospheres represented in those heritage buildings.