A pizza slice is usually a delicious thing, and the triangle shape makes it easy to hold it in your hand and gobble it down. But if your apartment is shaped like one, how do you deal with the angles?
Watch this episode of a the pre-war apartment in the Tiong Bahru neighborhood in Singapore that James renovated to become the first home he owns. This renovation is part of a series that documents Singapore’s built heritage, developed in collaboration with the National Heritage Board. The country held the Singapore Heritage Fest last May 1 to 24, 2024, a nationwide exploration of the country’s heritage.
The Pizza-Shaped Pre-War Apartment
James wanted four elements in his home: 1) must be masculine, 2) must be a bit urban, 3) must have a bit of Bali vibes, and 4) a bit artistic.
Watch the video to see how he changed the layout of the flat, and how with meticulous care, he preserved some of the apartment’s original elements while installing modern amenities. He ended up with a good mix of old and new, very much in keeping with the neighborhood where the apartment is located.
Check out the feature image above to see the 93 sqm apartment’s pizza slice layout. When you enter the front door, the curved wall leads you to the right where the open-concept living, dining, kitchen, and balcony areas are situated. Straight through from the front door and near the curved wall are other doors which lead to the master bedroom, toilet and bath, and guest room-cum-study.
Much thought was given to the design of the apartment to fit James’s lifestyle and honor the origin of the building. Here are some of the design features that make this place look and feel so cohesive:
- the colors throughout the whole apartment are neutrals—white, gray, black and brown.
- the use of black-painted metal—the open shelves that look like scaffolding, the windows, bi-fold doors, and even the two posts with the bedside lamps in the master bedroom
- wooden dowels wall panels and cabinets running from hallway to kitchen
- the use of travertine in the bathrooms, entryway, kitchen, and dining table.
- custom-made furniture and fixtures to directly address both function and form that James wanted for his home
- highlighted original details, such as repurposing metal grills (bedrooms), restoring mosaic tiles (balcony), and stripping down part of the living room wall to show the original brick
- well-thought-out lighting throughout the whole apartment
- the imprint of the old wrought iron gates on the front door that is made of corten rusty steel, which gets weathered and ages with time.
The seamless melding of the modern design elements with the traditional building aesthetics makes this apartment noteworthy.
As James said, “I think the way this space was designed, in terms of having both kind of traditional elements as well as having modern and new elements, I think it’s really well positioned to kind of age alongside me and as I continue to spend time here. At the same time, this is the first property that I’ve ever owned. And so for me, I think it will always hold a very special place in my heart as first place I’ve really lived in and called my own out here in Singapore. For me, a home should be a place where you feel comfortable, where you can relax, you can entertain, and it should also be a reflection, in my opinion, of who you are as a person.”
Heritage
Singapore is a sovereign island country with an area of 710 square kilometers, as compared to our country’s 300,000 square kilometers. Maybe its small size has given birth to Singapore’s strong drive to preserve its heritage sites.
I love this definition of heritage by The Heritage Council of Ireland:
Our heritage is what we have inherited from the past, to value and enjoy in the present, and to preserve and pass on to future generations.
- Tangible (historical sites, buildings, monuments, objects in museums, artefacts and archives)
- Natural (waterways, landscapes, woodlands, bogs, uplands, native wildlife, insects, plants, trees, birds and animals)
- Intangible (customs, sports, music, dance, folklore, crafts, skills, and traditions)
Sometimes I feel sad when I see how we treat our own heritage. Instead of renovating them and preserving sites, it seems expedient to tear down buildings that were designed even by a National Artist, to be replaced by nondescript structures that would probably bring in more income for the owners. Or to read that pro-environment organizations have to defend the 5.4-acre forest park, known as Manila’s “last lung.”
There are so many more places in the country that are becoming battlegrounds between parties with different interests. More often than not, the people with power and money win. Even our national bird, the great Philippine eagle, is critically endangered because of deforestation and human activity.
So if you are ever in the position to own a heritage site, I hope you embrace the responsibility with love and take good care of it like James did with his pizza slice of a pre-war apartment in Tiong Bahru.
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