The Interlace / OMA

Architects: OMA
Location: Singapore
Architect In Charge: Ole Scheeren
Area: 169600.0 sqm
Year: 2013
Photographs: Iwan Baan

Local Architect: RSP Architects Planners & Engineers (Pte) Ltd
Site Area: 81000 sqm

From the architect. The Interlace is located on an elevated eight-hectare site, bounded by Alexandra Road and the Ayer Rajah Expressway, amidst the verdant Southern Ridges of Singapore. With about 170,000m2 of gross floor area, the development will provide 1,040 apartment units of varying sizes with extensive outdoor spaces and landscaping. The site completes a green belt that stretches between Kent Ridge, Telok Blangah Hill and Mount Faber Parks.

Designed by Ole Scheeren, partner of the Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA), The Interlace breaks away from Singapore’s standard typology of isolated, vertical apartment towers and instead explores a dramatically different approach to tropical living: an expansive interconnected network of living and communal spaces integrated with the natural environment. Thirty-one apartment blocks, each six-stories tall and identical in length, are stacked in a hexagonal arrangement to form eight large-scale open and permeable courtyards. The interlocking blocks form a vertical village with cascading sky gardens and both private and public roof terraces.

The design capitalizes on the generous size of the site and further maximizes the presence of nature by introducing extensive roof gardens, landscaped sky terraces and cascading balconies. Above- ground vehicular circulation is minimized, liberating large green areas within the development. The Interlace incorporates sustainability features through careful environmental analysis of sun, wind, and micro-climate conditions on site and the integration of low-impact passive energy strategies.

While maintaining the privacy of individual apartment units through the generous spacing of the building blocks and far-ranging views, the design also features communal spaces for shared activity. Extensive residential amenities and facilities are interwoven into the lush vegetation and offer opportunities for social interaction, leisure, and recreation.

Ole Scheeren said: “The design addresses concerns of shared space and social needs in a contemporary society and simultaneously responds to issues of shared living and individuality by offering a multiplicity of indoor/outdoor spaces specific to the tropical context.”

Patricia Chia, CEO of CapitaLand Residential Singapore, said: “This is a great opportunity to create and build a residential destination at the Gillman Heights site that will challenge the present architectural definition of living spaces. While developing the dramatic external form, we have also given much attention to creating comfortable internal spaces. The name, The Interlace, reinforces the interconnectivity of the community with the surrounding natural environment. Ole Scheeren has created a new landmark for Singapore.”