Petalz Residences

A Malaysian Green Building Index certified apartment building, Petalz Residences on Old Klang Road is not only a meticulously designed architecture but an energy efficient one at that.

The common theme is to marry up high rise living with nature in creating a harmonious eco system.

The building stands out in this otherwise typical Malaysian suburb.

Two towers surround a communal rooftop facilities.

A flower inspired canopy connects the buildings.

Beautifully designed facade treatment breaks up the otherwise bulky buiding.

Low Cost Buildings Can Be Beautiful Too

The idea behind Tamarind Suites by Ken Wong Architect is to break-away from the typical norm of small and compact units. The building is crafted with flexibility and functionality in mind. The communal facilities are designed to allow the occupants to be surrounded by nature. This design approach is to enhance living experience of its residents.

The building is expressed as a series of distinct blocks, layered in front of one another to give depth and dynamism to the development. A variety of unit types (studios and lofts) are skilfully woven together, to create a façade that is animated and porous. Light penetrates the building and garden spaces provide a notable connection to nature. A deep and sculpted façade casts shade on the building, reducing solar gain.

 

This building reminds us of the architecture of Le Corbusier which celebrates the dominant forms of architecture. It is proud of its materiality in the sense that the concrete walls are all exposed, there is no need for cosmetic treatment of paint which is the more common practice. This building shows that good architecture can be constructed with simple construction materials, that architecture should be true to its core identity.

由 Ken Wong Architect 设计的 Tamarind Suites 背后的设计理念是打破廉价公寓的典型规范。这座建筑的设计充分考虑了灵活性和功能性。设计让居住者被大自然包围, 于是提升居民的生活素质和体验。

光线穿透建筑，花园空间提供了与自然的显着联系。深邃的雕刻立面为建筑物投下阴影，减少了阳光的吸收。

这座建筑让我们想起了勒·柯布西耶 (Le Corbusier) 的建筑。混凝土墙完全暴露，它以其物质性而自豪，不需要再涂油漆进行装饰处理。这座建筑表明，好的建筑可以用简单的材料建造，建筑应该忠于其核心本质。

Another Example Of Vertical Garden In Singapore

A luxury residential tower named Park Nova in Singapore, will feature a lush vertical garden inspired by the city’s greenery. Singapore is fast carving a name for herself as the vertical garden city of the world with countless high rise buildings with such design. PLP’s biophilic design will blur the line between indoor living areas and outdoor spaces. The architect determines to redefine metropolitan living by promoting health and wellbeing, a thing that was not associated with living in the concrete jungle in most people’s minds.

Set in Singapore’s coveted Orchard neighbourhood, formerly home to orchards, Park Nova tower was inspired by the area’s history and lush green character, striving to maintain and further enhance this feature. The building is elevated above the tree canopy on slender columns. Optimal shading and ventilation are achieved by the rotated undulating floor plates which are arranged to form three wings.

The 21-storey building contains 54 apartments and hosts a variety of resident amenity spaces. Each apartment benefits from a 270degree panoramic view, and the green terraces offer a natural noise barrier. The project features a sky-terrace on the 14th floor, which hosts a gym and a lounge, together with a vast outdoor space, that marks the building’s silhouette.

Park Nova is PLP’s first residential high rise building, marrying the practice’s extensive knowledge in residential design and the vast experience with tall buildings. The London-based studio with a Tokyo office is currently designing several mixed-use projects in Singapore and, as a result, is considering establishing a South East Asia office.

Eden Singapore Apartments

As the name implies, one can expect to experience the hanging gardens of Eden living in this apartment designed by Heatherwick Studio. The ripple configuration of the shell shaped planters is particularly dramatic seeing from the street level.

Source: Archdaily

Urban Residences In Penang

This place was once occupied by squatters. Few have ventured into the interior of the urban villages except for those who resides there. It was also thought to be the place where most local gangsters live.

However, due to the ever increasing demand of housing where every square foot of land is as precious as gold, the only solution to the population explosion is to build up.

 

Time For Reflections

Reflections at Keppel Bay’s mesmerising forms epitomises Daniel Libeskind’s signatorial designs with his first-ever residential development in Asia. The form is so unreal that you won't know whether you are looking at real buildings or computer graphics. This project is an icon for its kind in this part of the world.

Ascending like a symphony of chords with its soaring towers and low-rise apartment blocks, this veritable masterpiece commands breathtaking views of the sea and city skyline.

At its centre stage is a 100,000 square-feet reflecting pool skirting the multiple towers. A host of lifestyle amenities, such as an Olympic-length swimming pool and a state-of-the-art gymnasium, provide stylish environment for leisure. The 5 star facilities also provide great excuse to invite friends for social gatherings.

Within 6 sky towers and 11 fan-shaped villa apartment blocks, 1,129 well-appointed luxury homes ranging from 2- to 4-bedroom apartments and penthouses; including an exquisite grand penthouse with 6 bedrooms and an entertainment lounge spanning 13,300 square-feet.

City of Tower Cranes

Scenes like these are common in major developing cities across Asia.

Premier Tower Inspired by Beyonce

Sydney has a building described as a “squashed paper bag” and soon Melbourne will have a tower inspired by Beyonce. The Texas-born superstar apparently inspired the design of the 226m-high Premier Tower, which will replace the iconic but long-­shuttered Savoy Tavern on Spencer Street, according to architects Elenberg Fraser. 

 

“Art and science? You betcha. For those more on the art than science side, we will reveal that the form does pay homage to something more aesthetic — we’re going to trust you’ve seen the music video for Beyonce’s Ghost,” the architects said.

The undulating glass shape of the apartment and hotel project, which was designed on behalf of Singaporean developer Fragrance Group, pays homage to the fabric-wrapped dancers who appear in the music video, directed by Belgian director Pierre Debusschere and released in 2013.

Fragrance purchased the site, opposite South Cross Station, in June last year for $44.5 million, just a week after buying another development site, at 555 Collins Street, from Harry Stamoulis for $78m.

The 1800sq.m. Savoy Tavern, at 134-160 Spencer Street in West Melbourne, was previously owned by businessman Mark Rowsthorn after he purchased it from the Republic of Nauru in 2005 for $9.9m.

The project has development approval for a 68-floor tower with 660 apartments and a 160-room hotel, but the Elenberg Fraser-designed building rises to 78 floors in anticipation of aviation authority approval for additional storeys.

But even if Fragrance, headed by billionaire developer Koh Wee Meng, is granted approval for the additional height, the tower will still be somewhat shorter than a nearby project being developed by his brother, Koh Wee Seng.

Aspial has commenced the construction of the 317m, 108-floor Australia tower, designed by Fender Katsalidis Architects, at 70 Southbank Boulevarde, which will be one of Melbourne’s tallest once complete.

Fragrance had originally intended to build a 90-storey tower on the Savoy site, with an end value of $700m, before reducing the size of the project to its present level.

 

Source: The Australian

Elenberg Fraser’s admission that their curvaceous new building design Premier Tower was inspired by the video for popstar Beyoncé’s song Ghost has elicited strong reactions across the globe.

The building, developed by Fragrance Group, boasts an undulating form made up of a series of cantlivers. News of its link to the prominent popstar was reported on Dezeen, The Guardian, The Chicago Sun-Times and The Huffington Post.

The Huffington Post described the building’s resemblance to the singer as “uncanny”.

“The grandness of the building is striking enough, but there’s something else — this building’s got curves,” the article reads. ”But these aren’t just any curves, of course. They are Beyoncé curves.”

The response from The Guardian‘s Oliver Wainwright, though, was much harsher, noting that that the Fragrance Group is, “by no means the first developer to deploy the crass metaphor of a writhing female form to sell a pile of expensive flats.”

He compared the project to the Chinese practice MAD’s Marilyn Monroe-inspired project and Frank Gehry’s 1992 Fred and Ginger building in Prague, which was modelled on Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers dancing.

“Still, for creatively challenged architects and their attendant marketing consultants, the world of celebrity-shaped buildings offers endless possibilities,” he wrote.

Source: ArchitectureAU
 

Titijaya's RM2.6 Billion Project In Penang

SHAH ALAM (May 27): Titijaya Land Bhd obtained shareholders’ approval to acquire about 23 acres of leasehold land in Batu Maung, Penang to build a mixed-use development after its extraordinary general meeting (EGM) here today. The land is located within 1.5km from the Sultan Abdul Halim Mua’dzam Shah Bridge (the Second Penang Bridge). 

The mixed-use development will be built by Titijaya Land’s wholly-owned subsidiary, City Meridian Development Sdn Bhd and is the group’s first development outside of the Klang Valley.

“The property market in Penang is highly competitive, but we believe that the demand for residential and commercial properties in Penang is expected to remain favourable among local and foreign buyers,” deputy group managing director Lim Poh Yit (pictured, right) told reporters after the EGM. 

The land acquisition will be satisfied via a cash consideration of RM126 million in bank borrowings and internal funds.

The newly acquired landbank will be used to develop a proposed mixed-use development with a gross development value (GDV) of about RM2.6 billion. The proposed development, which is yet to be named, will offer about 1,700 small office, home office units across four blocks, retail components and four office towers.

According to GDP Architects Sdn Bhd's associated partner Hairul Afzahizan Osmayati (pictured, below), the development will be built in three phases.

“We phased out the developments into three [phases]. The first phase will have two residential blocks with retail and shops; Phase 2 will be the remaining retail and two residential blocks. The last phase will be [all four] office [towers],” said Hairul. GDP Architects is the appointed master architect for the whole project.

Lim said: “We plan to launch Phase 1 this year. It will be either year-end or early next year, which is our launching schedule.” He added that the first phase will have an estimated GDV of RM600 million.

Lim is aiming to obtain approval from the authorities to develop the project by early next year.

After the land acquisition, Titijaya Land has 432.47 acres of landbank throughout Malaysia.

“We believe that this acquisition will expand our development activities in the future, which will contribute positively to the group’s future financial performance,” Lim added.

Source: The Edge Property

Nadayu 290 Penang

Strategically located along Jalan Bukit Gambier, Penang, Nadayu 290 is a distinctive high-rise residential development that offers luxurious serviced suites with resort-style facilities. The vision of the project is to be an eco-sanctuary with a private forest park. It is worth to take note that Nadayu 290 is also Green Building Index (GBI) certified. 

Enjoy panoramic views of Penang’s city skyline while being surrounded by natural landscape, Nadayu 290 will definitely be a much sought after property on this land scarce island.

Artist impression of Nadayu 290.

Units facing pool deck will enjoys stunning view of George Town city.

Bedroom with a view towards the surrounding landscape.

Grand lobby with chic modern design.

Infinity pool that is designed to be part of the architectural facade.

Pool deck with 5-star resort style facilities.

Vona Parkcity

Vona Properties Group in currently developing a mixed development project named Vona Parkcity in Bukit Gambier, Penang. One of the key features of the project is definitely the iconic Vona Sky Condominium with two skyscrapers containing 599 condo units ranging from the size of 1,100 sq.ft. to 1,800 sq.ft. The towers reminds me of another project in the area called Arte S. The first thought that came to my mind when I saw this project was that have they changed their design already which is a very common thing for developers to do in Malaysia. The towers look like a much watered down version of Arte S with its more conventional form. The overall dynamic forms are based solely on the protrusion of balconies and fins at different directions. In terms of form, it is still relied on stacking two dimensional planes to form a dynamic 3D object. This is unlike Arte S which is essentially a very fluid form throughout. Anyway, Vona Sky Condo is still a very interesting project that doesn't look like other typical boxy type apartments that have been mushrooming on the island in recent years.

India Tower

FXFowle Architects’ India Tower, to be built in South Mumbai to house a new Park Hyatt Hotel will be India's answer towards green architecture. Its designers claim that India Tower will be the greenest skyscraper in the entire country with rainwater harvesting, green materials, and a possible US LEED Gold rating.

Coincidentally reminisces Tianjin’s ‘Pile of Boxes’, the 60 story, 301 meter tower is divided into different modules, each slightly rotated to the next. Each module manifests a change in function of the tower namely a hotel, high rise residential units, a retail component and so on. Among its green features include shaded windows, natural ventilation, ideal site orientation, rainwater harvesting and eco-friendly building materials.

Imperial Tower

The Imperial Tower designed by Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture will be Mumbai’s tallest building, a slender 116-story, 400-meter residential skyscraper. Sky gardens of the tower are designed to "dampen" wind force around the tower helping the structure to stand strong against any lateral movements. 

The skyscraper is designed to incorporate environmentally friendly features such as rainwater harvesting, gray water recycling and exterior cladding that can limit solar heat gain. The design also includes the possibility of the apartments’ kitchens and bathrooms to be prefabricated by a local factory.

The Astaka @ Iskandar Johor

Aerial View of The Astaka

Building components of The Astaka

Floor Plan of The Astaka

3D Rendering of The Astaka