Büro Ole Scheeren recently completed DUO, a pair of sculptural glass towers in Singapore’s Kampong Glam neighborhood. The striking mixed-use development is partly wrapped in a honeycomb facade designed to promote solar shading and to accentuate the project’s curved form. The concave facade also help create a cooling microclimate by channeling winds towards the lushly landscaped parks below.
In addition to its eye-catching appearance, DUO also marks a historic joint venture development between the governments of Malaysia and Singapore. Located between Singapore’s historic Kampong Glam district and commercial Bugis Junction, the twin towers will transform the area into a new civic hub with welcoming public spaces including 24-hour covered and open-air gardens, walkways, cafes, and restaurants.
“DUO is about a sense of urban responsibility,” says Ole Scheeren, principal of Büro Ole Scheeren. “It shows how architecture can become a tool of reconciliation within an otherwise disparate and fragmented urban context. The project repairs a broken piece of the city and celebrates public life as the central quality of a socially responsible urban environment.”
Related: Ole Scheeren unveils designs for a stunning “sky forest” in Vietnam
The taller of the two towers at 186 meters is solely residential and houses 660 units. The second 170-meter-tall building includes corporate offices and a five-star Andaz hotel. Additional commercial areas are placed at the public ground floor that’s entirely passively cooled in an oasis-like environment.
Via ArchDaily
Images © Iwan Baan
