22/08/2026
AR007 | Shophouse of Beloved Old Things
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is an architecture that collected imprints of the past, and served as a quiet backdrop of the myriad antique furniture and collection of the client. While the repair work was extensive, the intervention was meant to feel seamless. The existing fabric, colours and material palette, became the guide for our design language. Careful removal of existing conserved tiles made way for new footings, existing stairs dismantled, restored and shifted to the side unlocking a quiet symmetry, a new lift (this was one of the hardest feat) stood amongst the doors of new French doors. French windows established the threshold
character between old and new. Beige pebblewash, an old and ubiquitous material reapplied with precision, demarcates these thresholds: at the entrance, along the base of walls where they meet the old Peranakan tile floors, and rising as the datum that receives the refurbished original staircase. Where we could reveal, we did. Layers of plaster were peeled back within the courtyard to expose
original brick. Timber joists and roof rafters were left bare. Old ventilator blocks were salvaged and reused along the parapet of the new extension.
It was a project that took 4 years to realise, and happy that it made the shortlist for this year’s SIA Design Award. Hope it continues to collect new memories with the owners.
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📸: chan .photos 12 onwards shows the original state of the shophouse)
Project undertaken in collaboration with FARM
