Design

“The last thing I turn to for inspiration is architecture,” says Rene Tan. “I turn to music, or to football. If I hadn’t been an architect, I’d be a football historian. Football has taught me a lot of things – organising a team, organising space. There is an approach to football that emphasises what you do when you don’t have the ball – rather than what you do when you do have the ball. To mark space, to occupy and manage the space.”

German luxury camera brand Leica introduces its newest and largest flagship showroom in Southeast Asia, located at the historic South Beach Quarter in Singapore. The site doubles as the Leica Galerie exhibition gallery, showcasing exceptional works of photography and visual art.

State Of Craft founder and designer Daniel Goldberg talks us through the timeless essence of design and what it means to create internal spaces, from an anthropological perspective, that caters to an individual's physical and emotional needs.

In his hometown of Singapore, Sacha Leong is best known for his design work on two of this city’s most acclaimed restaurants: chef Julien Royer’s Odette and Claudine. That’s perfectly fine with Leong. While Nice Projects, the London-based studio he operates in partnership with Australian Simone McEwan, has worked on a wide variety of projects, including coworking and coliving spaces, luxury residential and retail, “Hospitality is our passion,” Leong says.

As the Phuket property market transforms into one of the most robust in the region, it welcomes its latest luxury wellness residential and hospitality community along beautiful Bang Tao Beach. Gardens of Eden reflects Thailand's tropical splendor in many ways. With it comes a breezy arcadia of grand proportions.

As an Italian heritage brand, Molteni&C's pursuit of exceptional design has led to some key collaborations with titans like Angelo Mangiarotti, Tito Agnoli and Luca Meda. The Italian furniture maker, after all, has always sought out creative partnerships that exercise its artisanal vision and legacy of craftsmanship.

Known for its bespoke yet sustainable kitchen fittings and bathroom solutions, Grohe, through its sub-brand Grohe Spa, unveils the 'Aquatecture' installation at the World Architecture Festival (WAF). The showcase underscores the significance of water in design and highlights its impact on individual health and well-being.

The stately conservation villa comprising one half of the Space Furniture showroom in Singapore offers a dramatic counterpoint to the contemporary glass structure by Woha architects that composes the other. It’s a fitting backdrop – daring in its modernity, yet with a deep respect for heritage – for Boulevard’s interview with Piero Lissoni.

A pillar of modern kitchen design, Bulthaup's modules, particularly the b1, b2 and b3 concepts, have been heralded around the world for their variety of configurations and angular simplicity. The brand's architectural character, which is heavily influenced by the Bauhaus movement, expresses a certain harmony between function, production and quiet artistry.

No discussion about Singapore's residential architecture is complete without a mention of Robin Tan and Cecil Chee. Twenty good years since its founding, Wallflower Architecture + Design continues to make waves with clever homes that marry innovation, lifestyle solutions and beauty.

“My style is eclectic. I’m an avid collector, and I’m always adding coups de coeur from my travels, as I encounter beautiful pieces. Designing a home is about creating and revisiting your own memories... I love setting eyes on these pieces and recollecting a person or a place. And then I can’t help but collect the artists I represent – such as Isabelle Van Zeijl.”

Prolific interior designer Bill Bensley has worked his aesthetic magic on more than 200 hotels, but just a small number of private homes. Why does the Bangkok-based American, known for his environmentally sensitive approach, prefer collaborating with hoteliers rather than home-owners? Primarily, it’s because the former can be relied upon to maintain the integrity of his design.

“I love the way the English decorate their homes. They’ll pick out some fabric swatches and come back and pin them on the sofa, and then live with them for two weeks. And they drink their tea and look out at the garden, and finally when they feel a connection they’ll choose the fabric that is dear to them, and then they move on to the next thing, and the whole process takes two years,” shares Roy Teo, co-founder of design firm Evocateurs. “Whereas Singapore is very fast paced, so we need to replicate that entire process, but we need to get it done by yesterday.”

Rich in history yet utterly contemporary. A secluded idyll, minutes from the heart of Southeast Asia’s foremost financial centre. Capella Hotel on the island of Sentosa is an exercise in contrasts.

Fernando Botero's horse stands guard over the entrance to Cuscaden Reserve – having relocated after its years of sentry duty at The Marq on Paterson Hill. While the newly completed condo features smaller-format residences in contrast with The Marq’s eminently lavish proportions, there is noticeably no deficit of design, detail, architecture, and indeed, art. And this is the unique appeal of Cuscaden Reserve: a luxury pied-à-terre that genuinely delivers on its positioning.

Polish-born Australian artist Izabela Pluta works within the expanded field of photography to enact processes of record-making and translating that re-imagine the role performed by images in a broader social context. Her next solo exhibition, 'Image after Image', opens in May at Gallery Sally Dan-Cuthbert in Paddington, Sydney.

In a design world teeming with Scandi-contemporary minimal-leaning maisons and collections of neutrals, naturals and tints, the runaway sumptuousness of Visionnaire is, if anything, gathering pace. The iconic Italian atelier is leaning in to a ‘high décor’ of eye-popping mosaic art, statement stone-slab tables, lavish shagreen-clad sofas and irresistibly textural wall coverings.

Like most, if not all of life's great pleasures, the Mobilia showroom is not without its risks. Principally, the prospect of falling in love with a whole new lounge suite and having to update one’s salon every other season.

Singapore-based interior designer Elliot James Barratt gives Boulevard the inside story on a sophisticated sanctuary in South Beach Residences, complete with whiskey library and covetable walk-in wardrobe for two serious collectors.

Singapore’s sublime new members’ club began in London, when founder and former banker Grant Ashton found himself with a wine problem. The dilemma was an overabundance of fine wines in his collection – and a desire to share it.

There are doubtless innumerable ways to define life phases; before and after your first paycheck; before and after children. Our latest, and most exigent distinction: before and after bespoke carpets. After an hour spent talking with Gurcharan Singh, director of Tai Ping’s exclusive Singapore distributor Etesse, it’s hard to fathom how we’ve survived thus far without one of his sublime silk creations under our feet.

“I’m not into minimalism,” says Anna Layard. As an art historian, consultant and founder of Layard Interiors, it would be almost criminal if she were to pare back the artefacts, paintings and sculptures in her home.

The owners gave Tan free reign, including the choice of materials, finishes and colour palette. And the layers of granite, light grey and ash warrant a closer look: starting with the natural veins in the stone and sensory finishes. “The use of tactile materials was intentional,” he says. “We explored sandblasted oak doors, serrated and chiselled marble in the kitchen, and blackened stainless steel trims in a hairline brushed finish.”

When we think cutting-edge (and fabulously good-looking) home-tech, it's usually hardware. Things with elegant dials, things that bathe us in the glow of their lights or answer us when we have questions or clean up after us after we've left the room.

The days of the basement cellar may well be numbered. With the rise of next-level wine chillers and wine-wall tech, our cellars have ascended from the underground depths to the centre stage of our dry kitchens – and now our lounges. Bodega Living’s bespoke, showcase cellars take this oenophilic trend to another level that is equal parts wine wall and art piece.

One of the key responsibilities of a CEO is keeping their team motivated, engaged and inspired. The inspiration element is especially important at a brand like Bang & Olufsen, which is both a producer of state-of-the-art electronic equipment, and a company that makes beautifully designed, handcrafted objects. Boasting nearly 100 years of tradition, this is a business which, nevertheless, existentially depends upon remaining on the technological cutting edge.

First presented in 1970, B&B Italia's iconic 'Camaleonda' sofa by architect and designer Mario Bellini was "created to fill a void". At the time, it launched a middle ground between traditional and avant-garde furniture that offered a design-forward yet thoroughly liveable piece that uniquely continues to adapt to its owners’ changing requirements. Through its system of cables, hooks and rings, the endless modularity also serves as a design signature.

Since its creation in 1983 by architect Antonio Citterio, the ‘Max’ sofa has become a staple of chic anterooms, boutiques and the more poised corporate lounges. The design icon marries the linear rigour of its tubular metal structure with the kidney-bean-shaped sprawl of the seat, set off by candy-cane striping for added panache.

Gorgeous organic forms and exquisite crystal have long been the hallmarks of Serip’s unique take on statement lighting. The brand’s chandeliers’ delicate branching structures and almost liquid pendalogues afford a beautiful diffusion of light as it reflects off the metallics and ripples through the crystal. 

“Everything is customised, to some extent, whenever a designer works on anything,” says Bobby Cheng. “But for me, when pieces become one of a kind, and created for the context and purpose of one particular project, and when we labour through it as though it were a project in itself – at that point, I would dare say there is a bespoke nature or process.”

Singapore’s Good Class Bungalows are iconic not just for their impressive size and exclusive locations within prime residential pockets around the island. Breathtaking architecture and interiors bring these homes to the peak of the luxury property market in Singapore.

Famed Italian brand Molteni&C introduced the newest pieces in its outdoor collection at its Winsland House showroom in Singapore recently. With it, guests, architects and designers were treated to a collection that highlighted new finishes, revamped interior solutions and the same contemporary Italian proportions and detail that the brand has long championed.

Christopher Guy welcomed another exceptional Boucher & Co exhibition at its flagship showroom in Singapore from June 27 to July 18. The leader in world-class bespoke furniture design remains one of the most sought-after brands for its peerless craftsmanship.

The self-described 'creators of the world’s most fabulous lifestyles', Christopher Guy has launched its flagship showroom in Singapore – and, true to form, gone big on the glamour. Occupying a full floor of the Citibank building on Orchard Road, the showroom is all lacquered hardwoods, sumptuous chaises and the brand’s signature, voluptuous curves.

Introduced during the Milan Design Week, the Ralph Lauren Home Modern Driver Collection for Fall 2024 is rooted in modern automotive design. Lauren, after all, has one of the most extensive automobile collections ever assembled. Cars like he 1938 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic Coupe, the 1929 Blower Bentley and the 1955 Mercedes Benz 300 SL Gullwing Coupe are credited for inspiring the mogul's design philosophy.

Boulevard had the honor of co-hosting an exclusive gathering with Sans Souci at the private residence of Christopher Guy CEO Kisa Harrison. Founders of Singapore's leading luxury interior designers and architecture firms were treated to an elegant dinner celebration, as well as a an intimate look at some iconic pieces inside the abode.

“The words ‘calming’ and ‘Mediterranean fresh’ cropped up a lot in our discussions and I think you can see that in the natural colour palette, fabric-lined walls, and contrasting light and dark veneers in Alpi wood composite," Nauta Design Co-Founder Massimo Gino says of the first SW108 Gelliceaux. "Everything is very easy on the eye and the overall ambiance is classy but cool, understated but sophisticated, stylish but warm.”

Collaborations between the sailing and luxury automotive industries are mostly perfect marriages. The FA Porsche-designed Elan GT6, for instance, delivered a handsome sporty vessel worthy of the Porsche name. Another was the Technomar for Lamborghini 63 motoryacht, which led to a boat that reflected the automobile giant's performance and ingenuity.

The fusion of fashion and furniture demands the highest order of provenance and execution. One name that is capable of such a rare feat is Trussardi Casa - the furniture line born from the iconic Italian luxury fashion house bearing a reputation for fine leather goods, ready-to-wear pieces and perfumes. 

By Hamish McDougallPhotography by Boulevard

Cinematic, seductive and quasi-surreal, Firangi Superstar announces itself as a “foreigner’s love letter to India.” Aesthetes with an eye for eccentricity might wonder if that foreigner is American francophile filmmaker Wes Anderson, the great creator of dreamlike worlds. But the applause here goes to restaurateurs Rohit Roopchand and Michael Goodman of the Dandy Collection, with creative director and principal of EDG, Piya Thamchariyawat, mastering the mise-en-scène.

The richness of oak panelling and painstakingly book-matched noce travertine floors sets off frameless floor-to-ceiling glass and endless green views. In the formal lounge, two JBL Everest speakers share the stage with a Balinese oil painting, The Monkey God Fire Dance. The statement dining suite features Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s classic ‘Hill House’ chairs by Cassina and a local adaptation of the accompanying table, with an artwork by French-born impressionist painter Viviane Cisinski.

Some of the world's top architecture firms have built piles in Singapore – and many of them are homegrown. These are the names behind brutalist icons and light-filled mansions, game-changing design projects, conservation heroes, and the occasional neoclassical masterpiece.

Where better to launch Boulevard's private viewing events in Sydney than the stunning, harbourfront Norfolk Penthouses.

The challenge posed by the hotbed of design talent in Asia is that it's hard to remain faithful. No sooner do we embark on a new home tour shoot than we fall in love all over again – with the bespoke materiality of Brewin Design Office, the runaway maximalism of Isabelle Miaja, the devastating sophistication of Evocateurs, the warm elegance of Elliot James Interiors, above, and on it goes...