Add To Collection
Add to Collection
Gibert&Tan’s Residence
Gibert&Tan’s Residence
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
Gibert&Tan’s Residence
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Firm
Type
STATUS
Built
YEAR
2025
SIZE
1000 sqft - 3000 sqft
BUDGET
$10K - 50K
Gibert&Tan’s Residence did not begin with a grand gesture or a fixed masterplan. It began quietly, almost tentatively, in 2013 – a modest renovation with a modest budget, shaped more by curiosity than ambition. Over the years, it has grown with us, shifting and adjusting as our studio, our habits, and our understanding of space evolved. Today, Gibert&Tan’s Residence stands not only as our workplace in Kuala Lumpur, but as a home for ideas – a place that listens, adapts, and teaches in its own quiet way.
The house is over half a century old, and its age is felt before it is seen. The street is lined with familiar facades, each carrying the patina of time. Gibert&Tan’s Residence does not announce itself. The front elevation has been preserved in its entirety – the old balcony, the slender window grilles, the entrance door – remains intact. This was deliberate. We wanted the building to continue speaking the language of its neighborhood, to stay grounded in the rhythm of the street, to belong.
Stepping inside, however, the experience shifts. The interior unfolds like a slow breath. Walls that once boxed the rooms into small dimmed compartments have been softened or removed. Light begins its journey from the reinstated backyard patio – a space that had long been sealed off and forgotten. Now revived, it casts a gentle brightness into the ground floor, guiding air and shadow as they slip across the polished concrete, the fair faced bricks and the timber desks, where work and life blur seamlessly. Furthermore, the tropical climate is not fought, but invited through openings positioned to capture movement; the house exhales as the day warms and inhales as evening cools. Upstairs, we stripped the ceiling back to its structural bones, letting the roof rise to its full height. In doing so, a new sense of volume emerged – an almost cavern-like openness that contrasts with the humbleness of the exterior. This expanded verticality allowed an attic to take shape, a tucked-away retreat that functions as additional living space, a loft for ideas, or a quiet refuge when the studio below hums with activity.
The materials throughout Gibert&Tan’s Residence are unpretentious – salvaged where possible, raw when necessary, always honest. Old finishes are buffed rather than replaced; mismatched textures are celebrated rather than concealed. The house wears its history like a well-loved garment, softened at the edges, comfortable in its imperfections.
Over time, it has become less a renovation and more a companion to our practice. It absorbs prototypes, hosts experiments, and quietly tests the concepts that later emerge in our projects elsewhere. Sometimes these ideas fail; sometimes they take root.
In many ways, it has never been fully finished – and that is its charm. It evolves as we evolve, reshaping itself in small gestures and subtle adjustments, always open to transformation. It reminds us that architecture is not just about arrival, but about the slow, ongoing journey of inhabiting, observing, and imagining.
Here, in this unassuming terrace house, we have found a place where work and life weave together, where the past is honored, the present is lived fully, and the future is quietly rehearsed. Gibert&Tan’s Residence is a story still unfolding – a narrative of continuity, experimentation, climate, and craft – told through walls that breathe and spaces that listen.
The house is over half a century old, and its age is felt before it is seen. The street is lined with familiar facades, each carrying the patina of time. Gibert&Tan’s Residence does not announce itself. The front elevation has been preserved in its entirety – the old balcony, the slender window grilles, the entrance door – remains intact. This was deliberate. We wanted the building to continue speaking the language of its neighborhood, to stay grounded in the rhythm of the street, to belong.
Stepping inside, however, the experience shifts. The interior unfolds like a slow breath. Walls that once boxed the rooms into small dimmed compartments have been softened or removed. Light begins its journey from the reinstated backyard patio – a space that had long been sealed off and forgotten. Now revived, it casts a gentle brightness into the ground floor, guiding air and shadow as they slip across the polished concrete, the fair faced bricks and the timber desks, where work and life blur seamlessly. Furthermore, the tropical climate is not fought, but invited through openings positioned to capture movement; the house exhales as the day warms and inhales as evening cools. Upstairs, we stripped the ceiling back to its structural bones, letting the roof rise to its full height. In doing so, a new sense of volume emerged – an almost cavern-like openness that contrasts with the humbleness of the exterior. This expanded verticality allowed an attic to take shape, a tucked-away retreat that functions as additional living space, a loft for ideas, or a quiet refuge when the studio below hums with activity.
The materials throughout Gibert&Tan’s Residence are unpretentious – salvaged where possible, raw when necessary, always honest. Old finishes are buffed rather than replaced; mismatched textures are celebrated rather than concealed. The house wears its history like a well-loved garment, softened at the edges, comfortable in its imperfections.
Over time, it has become less a renovation and more a companion to our practice. It absorbs prototypes, hosts experiments, and quietly tests the concepts that later emerge in our projects elsewhere. Sometimes these ideas fail; sometimes they take root.
In many ways, it has never been fully finished – and that is its charm. It evolves as we evolve, reshaping itself in small gestures and subtle adjustments, always open to transformation. It reminds us that architecture is not just about arrival, but about the slow, ongoing journey of inhabiting, observing, and imagining.
Here, in this unassuming terrace house, we have found a place where work and life weave together, where the past is honored, the present is lived fully, and the future is quietly rehearsed. Gibert&Tan’s Residence is a story still unfolding – a narrative of continuity, experimentation, climate, and craft – told through walls that breathe and spaces that listen.
Product Spec Sheet
Were your products used?
Join as a manufacturer to add your products.