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Architects: HYLA Architects
- Area: 357 m²
- Year: 2013
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Photographs:Derek Swalwell
Text description provided by the architects. Eng Kong Garden is a typical 3-storey semi-detached house in Singaporewith a site area of about 300sqm. A timber-clad facade greets the visitor to this private semi-detached house. The house opens upon to the side garden with its timber deck and lap pool. The staircase opens up in the middle of the house and an elliptical skylight brings in light to this space. The staircase splits the house in two volumes; the front houses the Living, Dining, Family Room, Bedroom and Lounge, while the back houses the Dry and Wet kitchen, Study, Bedrooms, Master Bedroom.
Aware of the fact that the neighbour’s house is just a stone’s throw away, the wall along the side elevation features a large solid white wall, with a timber slatted corridor which looks down to the pool below. This wall extends below the second story floor, framing the view of the garden and the lap pool. The view into the neighbour’s house is thus kept to a minimum. Vertical timber strips on the front façade form a delicate screen around the living spaces, providing some delight and a measure of privacy for its inhabitants.
While interior spaces are mostly obscured from public view in the morning, they become visible at night as the interior lighting passes through the gaps between the timber strips on the façade, which is a visual delight. The 3rd storey has a lounge room which opens to the roof terrace. An open shelf with varying widths and heights reflect the design of the front facade, which also has its timber members reducing in width towards the edges.
