Architecture is home. It is the place where we seek refuge and safety.

Project Title:     House for 2 (inspired by Sir John Soane)
Building Type: Weekend Home
Site/Location:  National University of Singapore
Country:              Singapore

Design Intent

Designed to be a retreat for a couple, the house was inspired by Sir John Soane’s (1753 – 1837) Lincoln’s Inn Fields that was built in the neoclassical fashion of that time.

One of the key elements in preserving his architectural language is the pursuit of a perfect symmetry. There is a main axial line of symmetry cutting through the length of the entire house, and many smaller sets of symmetry running perpendicular to it, each set of symmetry defining a different set of functions. In this way, the perceived space for each function is bigger than it actually is due to the absence of walls. Light was another tool used to divide the spaces. The dome, while marking the centre of the public spaces, allows light to pour into the house, giving the living room its due grandeur.

The transition of spaces becomes as such: first entering the house into a dim threshold with a lower ceiling height into a larger, brighter living space with the dome, then back into a dimmer transition space that would serve as a study, and finally into the bedroom, with that of a higher ceiling and illumination. The stark contrast between each space in terms of height, light, textures aimed at heightening the sensorial experience of its inhabitants.

Design of Weekend Home for 2