Home & Decor Singapore pays tribute to three decades of design with a look back on its most interesting features over the years.
This week we look at this HDB executive flat in Yishun, in which the homeowner designed according to principles of his admired architects.
Richard Cheah, an architectural technician, has long been an admirer of Frank Lloyd Wright and John Portman, the architect responsible for the stately columns and mysterious open spaces of the Pavilion Intercontinental Hotel.
When Richard received the keys to his executive apartment in Yishun, he saw it as an ideal opportunity to put his draughtsman’s experience and the concepts of his ‘gurus’ into practice.
Although the HDB provided for a separate dinign room next to the living area, Richard preferred to relocate the dining area to the kitchen and turn the original dining room into a cosy family room. He figures that since his wife and he never invite people to formal sitdown dinners, he did not need a formal dining room.
What he did need was lots of wardrobe space. He knocked down part of the wall between the master bedroom and the adjoining bedroom to create a walk-in wardrobe. Behind this highlighted wall is the walk-in wardrobe that was created between the two bedrooms. The wall of the wardrobe juts out, creating a backdrop for the Thai painting.
In the tradition of Wright, Richard also used natural materials as far as possible. Oak is used on the door frames, and for the headboard and sidetables of the master bedroom.