Thoughtfully Designed

With Midtown Modern, we wanted to explore how we might create an experience that invites people to live in the city, yet create a rejuvenating environment that feels cocooned from the city. That was our main challenge.

Because we’re designing homes for people to build their lives upon, what I hope to evoke in residents is a feeling of warmth and intimacy – as if they are coming home to the comfortable companionship of a close friend. We went with concrete and brown masonry to create this sense of cosiness, even though many might say that luxury is expressed with steel and glass. With Midtown Modern, we’re creating a different expression of luxury that is warmer and more comfortable, especially given that many will call it home.

As with all my other projects, Midtown Modern is driven by the fundamental goal of designing for people, first and foremost. This is no earth-shattering concept, though it certainly is a very important one. Architecture is a backdrop against which people’s lives unfold; a site on

As an architect, I’m always looking to design robust spaces that encourage people to fully embrace living in their own homes – rather than being reluctant to do so because it’s too immaculate or precious. Midtown Modern exemplifies this with its rugged aesthetic. To some, it may read as Brutalist, but for me it’s not so much about the look as it is about a tactility and toughness that I’m after.

It’s not up to me to say whether the design will be timeless, but it’s what I do aspire towards. The architecture of Midtown Modern is inspired by the brick buildings of Midtown districts in other cities such as New York and London. The materiality of brick is one that stands the test of time, and I hope that many years down the road, people will still look to Midtown Modern and find its qualities refreshing.

Martin Modern’s lush greenery and poetic spaces distinguished it from other luxury residential developments, and created a modern expression of livable luxury. We sought something similar with the garden sanctuary that we’re crafting here at Midtown Modern.

To me, living well means surrounding yourself with the people and things that you love. You don’t have to live in a very big space – you can live with a very small footprint, as long as it contains interesting nooks and corners that you can enjoy. The great trap of modern life is the belief that more is better, but I believe that going back to basics is the greater wisdom.

We took a biophilic approach in seeking to maximise residents’ connection to nature as much as possible. The result is a naturalistic and organic landscape that invites nature back into the city centre, after many years of minimal green spaces in this neighbourhood where shophouse developments prevailed.

By crafting a botanic resort of varying textures and terrains, it is our hope that people slow down to savour their experience of the landscape. Rustic gravel paths and boardwalks conjure a sense of journeying through the countryside.

With amenities deliberately woven in amongst the creeks and woods, we create moments for residents to let nature into their lives, and in doing so, allow wellness to emerge at the forefront of their experience.

We used the concept of seasons to differentiate zones in the Garden Deck. One would find flowering plants and trees in the Spring and Summer Woods, while the Autumn Wood features plant varietals that have orangey-red hues. Naturalistic landscape features such as creeks and pools surprise at every turn, creating moments of joy, excitement, interest, adventure and relaxation.

The Midtown Modern rooftops borrow from landscape elements of karstic mountain peaks, which are more minimalist in nature. Here, low-lying rockscapes are set against panoramic views of the city. Residents can catch a moment of Zen amidst the stark poetry of rock forms.

Taking inspiration from countryside resort villas, these transitions in scenery provide both interest and drama as one moves through the residence. At ground level, the high ceilings and lighting are grotto-like, while the third-storey Garden Deck is a lush forest. One ascends through these spaces to arrive at the mountain summit of the rooftops.

Midtown Modern’s landscaping takes a bold approach towards inviting nature into the city. Deviating from the trimmed, manicured approach that most residential developments take, we favour an expression of nature that is wilder, freer, and more authentic. The dense canopy of trees at the Green Deck is one major example of this – even at the lap pool, trees are planted close to the pool’s edge such that sunlight filters through the canopy of the trees overhead and gives the sense that one is ensconced in greenery on every inch of the land.