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Sumit Singhal
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.

Loft House in Singapore by MING ARCHITECTS

 
July 1st, 2020 by Sumit Singhal

Article source: MING ARCHITECTS

The brief for this intermediate terrace house in Singapore requires discreet separation of spaces for the clients, a large inter-generational family. Due to the family size, more floor area was required than the usual building envelope could support. As the site is small, the challenge was to create sufficient space and yet achieve privacy between the separate spaces and zones for the individual family members. In a highly dense built-up country like Singapore, creation of space within tight limits is a necessity for successful architecture.

Image Courtesy © MING ARCHITECTS

  • Architects: MING ARCHITECTS
  • Project: Loft House
  • Location: Singapore
  • Software used: Google Sketchup and Autodesk Autocad

Image Courtesy © MING ARCHITECTS

The key to achieving this was creating a sunken ground floor to allow the insertion of another extra storey. Another challenge was the constraint of insufficient light, as the house is an intermediate terrace with shared party walls on both sides. To counter the usual dark internal spaces of such houses, a large internal airwell was carved out in the middle of the house, covered with a glass skylight above. All living and bedroom spaces thus have good natural lighting in the day. Hot air is allowed to escape via ventilation slots at the skylight, providing a chimney stack effect and drawing in cooler air from the window openings on the ground floor. This requirement for natural light extended even to the design of the perforated staircase treads, and careful placement of the various skylights which created delightful shadow patterns on the walls according to the time of day.

Image Courtesy © MING ARCHITECTS

Image Courtesy © MING ARCHITECTS

On the second storey, a small swimming pool sits in front of the dry kitchen and entertainment room, with a steel feature staircase leading up to the third storey. A spacious loft is provided for the master bedroom, with a 6m double height ceiling space finished in a modern industrial style. To allow views and light down to pool below, a hole is cast in the floor slab and netting suspended over the pool, providing a playful sensory experience for the young children in the family. Such visual connections strengthen the relationships between various spaces in the house and allow the occupants to experience the house in different ways.

A self-contained duplex unit at the rear is provided with its own spiral staircase for access between the two levels, with living spaces below and private on top. On the facade, materials such as cut to size granite bricks and black spray-painted steel mesh doors provide a charming interplay and warmth to the exterior.

Image Courtesy © MING ARCHITECTS

Image Courtesy © MING ARCHITECTS

Image Courtesy © MING ARCHITECTS

Image Courtesy © MING ARCHITECTS

Image Courtesy © MING ARCHITECTS

Image Courtesy © MING ARCHITECTS

Image Courtesy © MING ARCHITECTS

Image Courtesy © MING ARCHITECTS

Image Courtesy © MING ARCHITECTS

Image Courtesy © MING ARCHITECTS

Image Courtesy © MING ARCHITECTS

Image Courtesy © MING ARCHITECTS

Image Courtesy © MING ARCHITECTS

Image Courtesy © MING ARCHITECTS

Tags:

Categories: Autocad, House, Residential, SketchUp




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