The design interventions were opportunistic to integrate the house into the surrounding nature and wildlife. A void in the home housed a 10-meter-tall Memphat tree, and the architect populated the rear court with a plethora of plants and vegetation. This extended the natural habitat for the birds, and many of them stopped by to roost and hang on the balcony railings of the house, creating an environment for flora and fauna to flourish alongside humans in the urban built environment, a sight truly rare in the urbanscape of Singapore. It is home to not only its human inhabitants, but it is also a welcoming sanctuary to an ever-growing diversity of plants and animals.
The house is an example of tropical architecture designed to well acclimate to the local climatic context of Singapore. The house is extremely open and porous, both internally and in its surroundings. From the front, a black ash wood and metal screen of varying porosity allows wind to go right into the house. When wind moves over the water body through the various levels and out to the back or out through the ventilated glass roof over the central atrium, the spaces get cooled down significantly. The staircase stack, designed with open treads, facilitates effective cross-ventilation into the rooms at all levels.
The heightened sense of light, sound, smell, and sight is truly refreshing. Any change in the light of the sky can be immediately felt from within the atrium. This openness enhances the living space, breeds connectivity, and is reminiscent of reliving the “kampong spirit," something the family likes to build on.
View Original