Grey scale: calming interiors meet the Singapore skyline atop Le Nouvel Ardmore
What apparently sealed the deal for the owner of this apartment on the 28th floor of Jean Nouvel’s eponoymous Le Nouvel Ardmore were the dusk colours, and the unobstructed 270-degree southeast views of Singapore’s green canopy and distant skyscrapers from the master bedroom.
‘She wanted the apartment to emulate the light blue and grey colours of the fall evening sky, when the light is less intense,’ says Bobby Cheng, the founder and lead architect of the Singapore-based Brewin Design Office.
To ensure there would be no contrast or visual break between the living spaces and the sky, Cheng has swathed the 380 sq m three-bedroom apartment in untreated Arctic grey granite and Prussian grey marble floor. Meanwhile, a silver stucco-coated ceiling and tints of silvery white and blue stucco further conspire to create the impression of the interior blending seamlessly with the exterior.
The level of bespoke detailing is impressive, particularly since the Hong Kong client literally uses the apartment as a vacation pied-à-terre for her twice or thrice yearly visits to Singapore from her American base. All the timber joinery was sourced and fabricated in Australia: white oak, American walnut and figured maple dominate. In the bathrooms, blue, black and beige travertine subtly reinforce the natural colour palette the client is so fond of.
‘It was a challenge to source unique stones,’ Cheng says. ‘We actually viewed stones in quarries before cutting them.’ The specified furnishings, too, hew closely to a calm cool palette – to wit, creamy Christian Liaigre sofas and armchairs, Jim Thompson cushions, pale Minotti leather benches, Apparatus chandeliers, and coral-patterned Tai Ping rugs.
For Cheng, the living and dining rooms are the most impactful for their quiet blend of horizon, colour, and views of the sky. ‘On certain evenings during the dusk light, the greyish blue sky is literally an extension of the balcony surfaces, with the edges of the building completely masked.’
INFORMATION
For more information, visit the Brewin Design Office website
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Daven Wu is the Singapore Editor at Wallpaper*. A former corporate lawyer, he has been covering Singapore and the neighbouring South-East Asian region since 1999, writing extensively about architecture, design, and travel for both the magazine and website. He is also the City Editor for the Phaidon Wallpaper* City Guide to Singapore.
-
A celestial New York exhibition showcases Roman and Williams’ mastery of lighting
Lauded design studio Roman and Williams is exhibiting 100 variations of its lighting ‘family tree’ inside a historic Tribeca space
By Dan Howarth Published
-
‘He immortalised the birth of the supermodel’: inside Dior’s career-spanning retrospective of photographer Peter Lindbergh
Olivier Flaviano, curator and head of Paris’ La Galerie Dior, talks us through a new Peter Lindbergh retrospective, which celebrates the seminal German photographer’s longtime relationship with the French house
By Jack Moss Published
-
Take a bite: Laila Gohar and The Luxury Collection’s ‘Cakes & Candles’ are a sweet treat for the senses
Laila Gohar’s six cake-inspired candles draw on The Luxury Collection’s hotels around the world – where guests can enjoy matching edible confections
By Tianna Williams Published
-
Exclusive peek at artfully curated home in Jean Nouvel’s 53 West 53
RR Interiors' latest furnishing project – 61A at 53 West 53 – highlights art, architecture and city views inside Jean Nouvel's monumental New York skyscraper in Midtown Manhattan
By Martha Elliott Last updated
-
Reform and Jean Nouvel unveil luminous kitchen design
Reform has collaborated with architect Jean Nouvel on a playful and practical new kitchen, with steel surfaces that catch the light
By Hannah Silver Last updated