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The Interlace

In Singapore, a large-scale residential development designed by OMA/Ole Scheeren, is an extensive network of private and shared spaces in radical reinterpretation of contemporary life in a community.

Instead of following the default typology of housing in dense urban environments – clusters of isolated towers – the design of the Interlace turns vertical isolation into horizontal connectivity and reinstates the notion of community as a central issue in today’s society.

31 apartment blocks, each six stories tall, are stacked in a hexagonal arrangement around eight generous courtyards. The interlocking blocks create a multitude of shared outdoor spaces, forming a dramatic topography of inhabitable terraced gardens across the stepped volumes. Partly resting, partly floating, the blocks hover on top of each other to form an expressive “interlaced” space that connects the individual apartments with accessible and inclusive community life.

Sustainability features are incorporated throughout the project through careful environmental analysis and integration of low-impact passive energy strategies. A series of site specific environmental studies, including wind, solar, and daylight analysis, were carried out to determine intelligent strategies for the building envelope and landscape design. As a result, the project has been awarded the Universal Design Mark Platinum Award and Green Mark GoldPLUS Award from Singapore’s Building and Construction Authority.

OMA / Ole Scheeren, The Interlace, Singapore

By stacking the apartment blocks, the design generates a multiplication of horizontal surfaces populated by extensive roof gardens and landscaped terraces that in aggregate provide 112% green area – more than the size of the unbuilt site.

The Interlace has been chosen by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) in Chicago as the winner of the inaugural worldwide Urban Habitat Award 2014 in recognition of its groundbreaking contributions to the urban realm and social sustainability.

OMA / Ole Scheeren, The Interlace, Singapore

OMA / Ole Scheeren, The Interlace, Singapore

OMA / Ole Scheeren, The Interlace, Singapore

INTERLACE_140623_DIAGRAM

OMA / Ole Scheeren, The Interlace, Singapore. Concept

Microsoft PowerPoint - INTERLACE DIAGRAMS

OMA / Ole Scheeren, The Interlace, Singapore. Concept

PRIVATE PUBLIC-UPDATED

OMA / Ole Scheeren, The Interlace, Singapore. Concept

The Interlace, Singapore
Program: residential
Architects: OMA
Partner in charge: Buro Ole Scheeren
Associate: Eric Chang
Executive Architect: RSP Architects, Planners & Engineers Pte.
Structure and services: Arup / RSP Architects, Planners & Engineers Pte. Ltd. and Squire Mech
Facade: Arup
Landscape architect: ICN Design International Pte. Ltd.
Graphic design: 2x4
Client: CapitaLand Singapore
Area: 170,000 sqm
Completion: 2013

Get the best of Domus straight to your inbox!

The Interlace

In Singapore, a large-scale residential development designed by OMA/Ole Scheeren, is an extensive network of private and shared spaces in radical reinterpretation of contemporary life in a community.

INTERLACE_140623_DIAGRAM

Microsoft PowerPoint - INTERLACE DIAGRAMS

PRIVATE PUBLIC-UPDATED

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