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Sumit Singhal
Sumit Singhal loves modern architecture. He comes from a family of builders who have built more than 20 projects in the last ten years near Delhi in India. He has recently started writing about the architectural projects that catch his imagination. Goodlife! Makan in Singapore by DP ArchitectsOctober 12th, 2016 by Sumit Singhal
Article source: DP Architects Goodlife! Makan, a recreational cooking, dining and activity centre for seniors at the converted void deck of 52 Marine Terrace in Singapore, has been awarded two prestigious accolades at Singapore Institute of Architects’ (SIA) Architectural Design Awards 2016. For its groundbreaking design concept, Goodlife! Makan was conferred the SIA Architectural Design Award in the Alterations & Additions category, beating out 6 shortlisted entrants, and was specially acknowledged by SIA as the “Best Project with Construction Budget of less than S$2 million”. Goodlife! Makan was one of only two projects to win SIA’s special jury awards (the other being “Building of the Year”), chosen from a total of 26 award winners that night. DP Architects was the only firm to have won two awards, testifying to the strength of DP’s people-centered designs.  Signature graphics & pictographs were used as signage to ensure effective and user-friendly wayfinding for the elderly, Image Courtesy © DP Architects
 The centre largely caters to stay-alone elderly, and cooking and dining together is at the heart of the experience at this social centre, Image Courtesy © DP Architects On the accolade, lead designer and DP Architects’ director Seah Chee Huang said, “We are humbled by the awards and kind acknowledgement by fellow architectural fraternity members on this extremely meaningful project. We are very thankful to have worked with an enlightened client, on pioneering this prototype of a community space which reintegrates stay-alone elderly into society through the simple but powerful notion of food, in a borderless and vibrant setting. The design acts as a catalyst for alternative ways to reimagine and create a more purposeful and inclusive built environment, especially in the face of our rapidly greying social fabric. The Singapore Institute of Architects Architectural Design Award further serves as a motivation for local architects to actively partake in design that has a positive social impact on our community.”  Inspired by local spices and ingredients such as red chili and red bean, red was used to denote the kitchen and food preparation space, Image Courtesy © DP Architects  A vibrant, borderless setting and food-related programmes better enhance the integration of stay-at-home elderly with the community, Image Courtesy © DP Architects The successful concept of Goodlife! Makan lies in how it supports ageing-in-place and meaningful pastimes that address the physical and mental wellness of seniors, through an initiative created by Montfort Care. Measuring 360sqm, the design articulates the client’s aims through its open plan and communal kitchen at its nucleus. The place aims largely at reconnecting stay-alone elderly to the wider community to facilitate multi-generational exchanges. With cooking and dining together as the essence of the experience, the activity space provides opportunities for senior residents to interact and socialise, while developing roles and responsibilities from the rituals of food preparation and consumption.  Colours form the key expression of this space, Image Courtesy © DP Architects  Design concept was inspired by the east of Singapore, known for its richly diverse food heritage, with spice jars as decorations, Image Courtesy © DP Architects The design capitalised on its porous void deck setting to create a colourful, open and fenceless compound, to reduce social stigma and shift away from conventional gated or glazed-up elderly activity centre models. As a result, Goodlife! Makan is an inviting communal space allowing for much cross-ventilation and daylight. The awards ceremony was held at Conrad Centennial Singapore on September 29, 2016.  Event setup, Image Courtesy © DP Architects  The recreation area, with the entire centre kept as borderless as possible, Image Courtesy © DP Architects About DP Architects Founded in 1967, DP Architects was one of the firms responsible for the urban landscape of Singapore. Now a leading architectural practice in Asia with over 1,200 staff and 17 offices worldwide, the firm provides a range of services from architecture, urban planning, landscape design, infrastructure design, engineering, sustainable design and interior design to project management. DP Architects has a long history in a wide variety of projects with a particular expertise in vast undertakings such as Suntec City, Esplanade-Theatres on the Bay and The Dubai Mall. Recent landmark projects include Resorts World Sentosa and Singapore Sports Hub. The firm was founded with a deep concern for the built environment and the need to create architecture of excellence that enriches the human experience and spirit. Sensitive to their context and the environment, DP Architects’ projects aim to improve the quality of life of the people using the buildings and spaces.  Other refreshing colours were used to denote the dining area, the recreation area and the reading area, Image Courtesy © DP Architects  The centre is designed to be well-ventilated, and full-height glass doors contribute to the sense of transparency that allows in natural light, Image Courtesy © DP Architects About Seah Chee Huang Seah Chee Huang joined DP Architects in 2003 and was appointed Director in 2014. In his architectural pursuit, Chee Huang has always been interested in exploring how architecture can be an effective social vehicle, purposefully designed to engage minds, touch hearts and inspire lives. Some of these explorations include Singapore Sports Hub, Our Tampines Hub project as well as the latest Sembawang Community Hub. He is also passionate about Corporate Social Responsibility efforts and leads key initiatives by DP Architects like Goodlife! Makan and Project Bus Stop.  Communal kitchen was kept porous so that interactions and movement are organic and seamless, encouraging the elderly to meet and socialise, Image Courtesy © DP Architects  Full-height openings blur boundaries and facilitate good ventilation, Image Courtesy © DP Architects  Location plan and site plan, Image Courtesy © DP Architects  Programmatic zones use universally understood iconography to enhance inclusivity, Image Courtesy © DP Architects  Site porosity allows seamless connectivity with an open plan for a flexible configuration of programmes, Image Courtesy © DP Architects  Food as core to the design concept, Image Courtesy © DP Architects
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