When the owners decided to buy this 3,800 sq ft residential plot in Upper Serangoon, the main considerations were its close proximity to the Kovan train station and their school of choice for their children. It did not matter that the surrounding context was far from ideal. Design, they thought, would help to work around the cons of the site.
Hyla Architects was their firm of choice for the project, with director Nicholas Gomes taking the lead alongside the firm’s principal Han Loke Kwang and senior architectural associate Wesley Fong.
“We had not encountered a site like this before,” said Gomes, with a pained look, before the tour started. “There is a four-block, 17-storey condominium looming over its front, a five-storey building to its side (a church) and 24-hour eateries in the rear. This semi-detached house definitely contends with a challenging urban context.”
Covering the upper levels of the house's front facade is a densely louvred aluminium screen that serves as a defining element. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
In short, there was almost no privacy to speak of, much less a view or anything remotely resembling a liveable environment. To make things worse, souped-up cars would rumble in the wee hours of the night for supper, their engines polluting the air with noise.
The only design direction Hyla could take was to turn the house completely inward. Not only did they have to shield its occupants from possibly prying eyes, but they also had to protect them from the noise of the neighbours. An additional consideration to juggle was the size of the multi-generational family living there: Four adults, three children, and two helpers.
The first impression of the house from the road is one of impenetrability. There are a lot of solid walls, especially at the side and back. Covering the upper levels of the front facade is a densely louvred aluminium screen that serves as a defining element. It rises vertically above a landscaped rooftop garden, before slumping backwards to follow the shape of the pitched roof in a wave-like formation.
The dining area. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
The living and dining areas. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
This distinct transition from rigid to pliant is achieved through threading cables through the slats, as one would a Venetian blind, rather than mounting it on a fixed frame. “It was a subtle twist on how to assemble it, a different way of detailing, where it feels like hanging a curtain. We gave the cables some tolerance, so the screen moves a bit with the wind,” Gomes explained.
Taupe in tone, it glows golden when the sun shines on it or the house is illuminated from within, evocative of a lantern. Aesthetics aside, the screen limits sightlines into the interiors from the condominium it faces, but still lets in light and air between the louvres.
All that hardscape is softened with generous planting on the garden, set atop the car porch roof below the start of the screen. The project is landscaped by This Humid House and, in this location, Climbing Frangipani creepers wend down the front of the slab, like a thick fringe.
The landscaping of this house is by This Humid House. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
In the courtyard covered by the densely louvred aluminium screen, gaze upwards to see three tiers of balconies with plants overflowing from them. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
Even after stepping through the front door, the narrative of “no peeping” persists in the foyer. A travertine-clad wall rises imposingly, 2.8m wide and 2.6m tall, obscuring the eye from everything. The effect is diluted by a pair of small, Zen-garden-esque courtyards that flank it, where a Ficus Alii tree grows from the ground covered with pebbles and rocks.
With a ceiling height of only 2.6m, the foyer feels confined – but this is immediately cancelled out when venturing into the next section. Suddenly, the space yawns open, at once expansive and cavernous. For visitors, the sense is of relief and delight.
The living and dining areas occupy a double-volume space so sizable it accommodates a HVLS fan. A swimming pool runs alongside it, with planter boxes overflowing with flora lining the boundary wall.
The 4m-tall feature wall hides a staircase that connects to the rooftop garden and courtyard. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
Look back towards the entrance and a feature wall dominates, rising 4m and covered in a book-matched marble – Les Quatre Saisons from Antolini, sourced from France. Beyond its decorative function, it conceals a staircase that connects to the rooftop garden and courtyard.
“One of the first things that we always think about is where to face the main living space. In this case, the back was out, so it had to be the side and front,” revealed Gomes, when asked about placing a courtyard in such an unusual part of the house.
Gaze upwards from there and what is visible are three tiers of balconies with a riot of plants bursting from them. This cascading effect gave the residence its name, Hanging Gardens, after the ancient world wonder in Babylon. Everything is tucked beneath the aluminium screen on the front facade, which itself can be admired at close range from there.
The mezzanine has a double-volume ceiling too, permitting the admiration of the open-tread staircase along the party wall. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
The entrance foyer with its imposing travertine-clad wall and one of two Zen-garden-esque courtyards. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
The courtyard is anchored by Ficus Alii trees and, together with the rest of the landscaping, brings to mind the tranquillity of a forest under-canopy. When the sun passes overhead, the shadows of the louvres create a dappled effect.
“Through the screen, when you are in this space, of course you can see a bit of the neighbours. But I am hoping that the context around them tries to disappear,” said Gomes.
Visible from the living room is the second gathering zone on the mezzanine floor, inserted above the dry kitchen behind the dining area. It too has a double-volume ceiling, adding to that sense of spaciousness.
The man-cave on the attic floor is painted a moody green as a backdrop to an antique French mahogany desk dating back to 1910.(Photo: Derek Swalwell)
Gomes pointed out that there was a very deliberate intention to design it this way: “In a big house, once you stratify it with too many levels, it tends to feel like a condominium with several apartments. The mezzanine therefore helps to connect the public spaces. The two double volumes were a bonus in the process, helping to link everything together.”
Another advantage? The possibility of having two groups of friends over at the same time, including one of them being children.
Still, it is inevitable that the upper floors become self-contained and disconnected from the others. Each of the four adults would demand their room to retreat into. On this point, Hyla delivered eloquently too.
The master bathroom. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
In one bathroom, an arched doorway to the shower zone adds a touch of whimsy. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
The second and third floor contain a total of five bedrooms, while the attic has a man-cave for the master of the house. Natural daylight floods them all, even along the party wall, thanks to the inclusion of a glass lift. At every available opportunity, pockets of greenery were inserted.
For instance, there is a small, 1.5m-wide courtyard on the mezzanine level behind the lift shaft that the rear bedrooms on the upper storeys look into. Some of the bathrooms have planters too, filled with Hoop Pine trees.
“Even something small is a gesture to create an internal view and to try and shift away from the undesirable external environment. The quality of a space is more important than its actual size,” Gomes explained.
While beige and sand hues dominate the palette of Hanging Gardens, the man-cave on the attic floor is painted a moody green as a backdrop to an antique French mahogany desk dating back to 1910. A panel in the bookshelves doubles as a secret door, sealing off the room from the rest of the house. The terrace that it looks out to is generously sized and at the opposite end, it overlooks the “hanging gardens” and courtyard in the front.
Since moving in, the owners have constantly had guests over. It is testimony to the liveability – and likeability – that Hyla’s design has achieved. Gomes concurred: “In every house, we are always trying to find a new way to arrange a space in the tropics. Given how dense the landed zones are, we prioritise creating a homely space without prying neighbours. I think we have managed to achieve all that with Hanging Gardens.”
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Hyla Architects was their firm of choice for the project, with director Nicholas Gomes taking the lead alongside the firm’s principal Han Loke Kwang and senior architectural associate Wesley Fong.
“We had not encountered a site like this before,” said Gomes, with a pained look, before the tour started. “There is a four-block, 17-storey condominium looming over its front, a five-storey building to its side (a church) and 24-hour eateries in the rear. This semi-detached house definitely contends with a challenging urban context.”
Covering the upper levels of the house's front facade is a densely louvred aluminium screen that serves as a defining element. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
In short, there was almost no privacy to speak of, much less a view or anything remotely resembling a liveable environment. To make things worse, souped-up cars would rumble in the wee hours of the night for supper, their engines polluting the air with noise.
The only design direction Hyla could take was to turn the house completely inward. Not only did they have to shield its occupants from possibly prying eyes, but they also had to protect them from the noise of the neighbours. An additional consideration to juggle was the size of the multi-generational family living there: Four adults, three children, and two helpers.
The first impression of the house from the road is one of impenetrability. There are a lot of solid walls, especially at the side and back. Covering the upper levels of the front facade is a densely louvred aluminium screen that serves as a defining element. It rises vertically above a landscaped rooftop garden, before slumping backwards to follow the shape of the pitched roof in a wave-like formation.
The dining area. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
The living and dining areas. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
This distinct transition from rigid to pliant is achieved through threading cables through the slats, as one would a Venetian blind, rather than mounting it on a fixed frame. “It was a subtle twist on how to assemble it, a different way of detailing, where it feels like hanging a curtain. We gave the cables some tolerance, so the screen moves a bit with the wind,” Gomes explained.
Taupe in tone, it glows golden when the sun shines on it or the house is illuminated from within, evocative of a lantern. Aesthetics aside, the screen limits sightlines into the interiors from the condominium it faces, but still lets in light and air between the louvres.
All that hardscape is softened with generous planting on the garden, set atop the car porch roof below the start of the screen. The project is landscaped by This Humid House and, in this location, Climbing Frangipani creepers wend down the front of the slab, like a thick fringe.
The landscaping of this house is by This Humid House. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
In the courtyard covered by the densely louvred aluminium screen, gaze upwards to see three tiers of balconies with plants overflowing from them. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
Even after stepping through the front door, the narrative of “no peeping” persists in the foyer. A travertine-clad wall rises imposingly, 2.8m wide and 2.6m tall, obscuring the eye from everything. The effect is diluted by a pair of small, Zen-garden-esque courtyards that flank it, where a Ficus Alii tree grows from the ground covered with pebbles and rocks.
With a ceiling height of only 2.6m, the foyer feels confined – but this is immediately cancelled out when venturing into the next section. Suddenly, the space yawns open, at once expansive and cavernous. For visitors, the sense is of relief and delight.
The living and dining areas occupy a double-volume space so sizable it accommodates a HVLS fan. A swimming pool runs alongside it, with planter boxes overflowing with flora lining the boundary wall.
The 4m-tall feature wall hides a staircase that connects to the rooftop garden and courtyard. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
Look back towards the entrance and a feature wall dominates, rising 4m and covered in a book-matched marble – Les Quatre Saisons from Antolini, sourced from France. Beyond its decorative function, it conceals a staircase that connects to the rooftop garden and courtyard.
“One of the first things that we always think about is where to face the main living space. In this case, the back was out, so it had to be the side and front,” revealed Gomes, when asked about placing a courtyard in such an unusual part of the house.
Gaze upwards from there and what is visible are three tiers of balconies with a riot of plants bursting from them. This cascading effect gave the residence its name, Hanging Gardens, after the ancient world wonder in Babylon. Everything is tucked beneath the aluminium screen on the front facade, which itself can be admired at close range from there.
The mezzanine has a double-volume ceiling too, permitting the admiration of the open-tread staircase along the party wall. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
The entrance foyer with its imposing travertine-clad wall and one of two Zen-garden-esque courtyards. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
The courtyard is anchored by Ficus Alii trees and, together with the rest of the landscaping, brings to mind the tranquillity of a forest under-canopy. When the sun passes overhead, the shadows of the louvres create a dappled effect.
“Through the screen, when you are in this space, of course you can see a bit of the neighbours. But I am hoping that the context around them tries to disappear,” said Gomes.
Visible from the living room is the second gathering zone on the mezzanine floor, inserted above the dry kitchen behind the dining area. It too has a double-volume ceiling, adding to that sense of spaciousness.
The man-cave on the attic floor is painted a moody green as a backdrop to an antique French mahogany desk dating back to 1910.(Photo: Derek Swalwell)
Gomes pointed out that there was a very deliberate intention to design it this way: “In a big house, once you stratify it with too many levels, it tends to feel like a condominium with several apartments. The mezzanine therefore helps to connect the public spaces. The two double volumes were a bonus in the process, helping to link everything together.”
Another advantage? The possibility of having two groups of friends over at the same time, including one of them being children.
Still, it is inevitable that the upper floors become self-contained and disconnected from the others. Each of the four adults would demand their room to retreat into. On this point, Hyla delivered eloquently too.
The master bathroom. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
In one bathroom, an arched doorway to the shower zone adds a touch of whimsy. (Photo: Derek Swalwell)
The second and third floor contain a total of five bedrooms, while the attic has a man-cave for the master of the house. Natural daylight floods them all, even along the party wall, thanks to the inclusion of a glass lift. At every available opportunity, pockets of greenery were inserted.
For instance, there is a small, 1.5m-wide courtyard on the mezzanine level behind the lift shaft that the rear bedrooms on the upper storeys look into. Some of the bathrooms have planters too, filled with Hoop Pine trees.
“Even something small is a gesture to create an internal view and to try and shift away from the undesirable external environment. The quality of a space is more important than its actual size,” Gomes explained.
While beige and sand hues dominate the palette of Hanging Gardens, the man-cave on the attic floor is painted a moody green as a backdrop to an antique French mahogany desk dating back to 1910. A panel in the bookshelves doubles as a secret door, sealing off the room from the rest of the house. The terrace that it looks out to is generously sized and at the opposite end, it overlooks the “hanging gardens” and courtyard in the front.
Since moving in, the owners have constantly had guests over. It is testimony to the liveability – and likeability – that Hyla’s design has achieved. Gomes concurred: “In every house, we are always trying to find a new way to arrange a space in the tropics. Given how dense the landed zones are, we prioritise creating a homely space without prying neighbours. I think we have managed to achieve all that with Hanging Gardens.”
Continue reading...