Bedtime Architectural Stories

 

   

Hectic and secluded life in Singapore It hard to imagine how could a place be both hectic and secluded, well, Singapore is. It is hectic because it is a modern city which contains heavy traffics and great load of commercial activities. It is secluded because no matter where you go you would be embraced by lush greeneries. You might order some street food at the busy local foodcourt but you can sit quietly by yourself under the foodcourt canopy.   Merlion Sculpture I know that the Merlion sculpture is unique to Singapore. But it is the Taxi driver who told me the story behind the Merlion sculpture. The 14th Century prince of the Sumatra encountered a lion when he landed Singapore, from then on the city was named after Singa (Lion) and Pura (City). Fish stands for the origin of Singapore - a fishing village.  The Newtown in Singapore - Haji Lane Haji Lane is a short 5 minutes walk little lane, it reminds me of the Newtown in Sydney or the Snail Street in Taiwan. They are both c...

It is probably not wrong to think Singapore as a city sized museum. It is a modernist ideologist testbed. When you travel through the city you would find modernist building of different age and style. It sits comfortable the two storey high parlour at Keong Saik Road and Bugis. If the day is gloomy, that place feels like Hong Kong   Yum Cha Building (The Hives) Even though Singapore is relatively small in its size, there are many spectacular architecture in this place. The first one I would like to introduced is the Yum Cha building, that name was a sarcastic response from the locals since the exterior looks like Yum Cha containers been stacked on top of each other. The formal name is the Hives (Nanyang Technological University) The exterior is in many convex shapes and the interior continues this language. From within, even the balustrade follows the curve and it is quite special because it is heavily vegetated. In Singapore, planter box and lush greeneries are part of the archite...

Adolf Loos once said that the “Absence of ornament has brought the other arts to unsuspected heights” but I tends question this after visiting the National Gallery of Singapore. Within the building, there is carefully crafted walls, balustrade and widely sized openings. They are dressed up in pleats. There is folding, layering and depth. I am not so sure if that’s what the architect’s intention to keep the heritage element and therefore the ornament, but it definitely convinces me to think that ornament is not a crime. The other thing that fascinates me is the manipulation of light in the space. The roof is composed of big skylight supported by bracing systems and the roof hold water. So that when the light strike the building, the light penetrate the roof and casting glittering effect on the walls. It is almost like the light is dancing on the wall.