Local Architecture Research + Design draws reference from the black-and-white colonial bungalow in the design of this Singapore home
The black-and-white bungalows in Singapore built between 1903 and 1941 to house European colonial and expatriate families provide local architects with plentiful inspiration. Constructed before the invention of air-conditioning, the perimeter sheltered verandahs and porous materiality made these houses comfortable in the tropics, shielding inhabitants from the harsh sunlight and perennial downpours but still letting breeze ventilate the interiors.
Cheung Yu Ting and Clifford See of Local Architecture Research + Design were inspired by this typology for the design of the Colonnade House. “Apart from referencing the obvious aesthetics of a black-and-white bungalow, we were more interested in the architectural innovations and intricacies behind the black-and-white bungalow’s adaptation to the tropical climate,” says Cheng on the three-and-a-half-storey intermediate terrace house.
Don’t miss: Home tour: A modern Singapore apartment with a curved living room
The design team kept the exterior simple with a rectangular box form that reflects an efficient grid structure. The columns on the facades are painted black “to show the rhythm of the grid,” highlights Cheng. The grid mitigates the scale of the house, giving it a sense of intimacy. A secondary rhythm in the cantilevering canopies above each window emphasises the structural grid.
This grid is hollowed out in the centre of the house with a void that connects the first three levels. The staircase faces this void, augmenting the sense of space. On the first storey, it rises above the kitchen, which opens to the dining and living room through an arched doorway. A large picture window behind the dining room brings in the landscaped scenery outside the home. On the second storey, the master bedroom and family room enjoys views and sounds of family happenings across the void.
