Ardmore Residence / UNStudio

Architects: UNStudio
Area: 5,625 m²
Year: 2013
Photography: Iwan Baan
Lead Architects: Ben van Berkel
Partners: Architects A61
Structure Engineering: Webstructures
MEP Consultant: J. Roger Preston
Facade: Ove Arup
Landscape Design: Tierra Design
Interior Design: Terry Hunziker
Client: Pontiac Land Group
Country: Singapore

Ardmore Residence, designed by UNStudio in Singapore, is a 36-story residential tower near Orchard Road. Completed in 2013, this project integrates the natural landscape of Singapore with modern architectural elements, offering expansive cityscape views and blending indoor and outdoor living.

The Ardmore Residence at 7 Ardmore Park in Singapore is near the Orchard Road luxury shopping district and offers panoramic views of Singapore City and the surrounding green areas.

The 36-story, 17,178 m² residential tower’s design concept is a multi-layered response to the ‘Garden City’ landscape of Singapore. This is achieved through four key details: the articulated facade with organic textures and patterns, expansive views via large glazed areas, the ‘living landscape’ concept for apartment interiors, and the transparency and connectivity of the ground-level gardens supported by a raised structure.

The facade’s micro-design features integrate structural elements like bay windows and balconies into a continuous line. This pattern repeats every four stories, with rounded glass creating column-free corners that merge internal and external spaces. The intertwining lines and surfaces wrap the apartments, incorporating sun screening and forming a unified whole. From a distance, the tower appears to change contours, while up close, the facade’s concrete panel openings create an organic transition as one moves around the building.

Inside, the apartments embody the ‘living landscape’ concept, extending functional spaces into versatile areas. Large windows and double-height balconies provide a wide variety of views across Singapore City, enhancing the indoor-outdoor living experience. The terrace spaces are integrated into everyday living, promoting seamlessness between interior and exterior spaces. Bay window features on the facade offer natural shading and opportunities for planting.

The floor plan for the 58 apartments maximizes daylight and panoramic views, creating a spacious atmosphere. This plan is based on Renaissance villa prototypes, with the concept of a “cours d’honneur” enabling visual links between different parts of the apartment. This design increases privacy for sleeping rooms and adds a four-dimensional aspect, allowing different wings to operate separately for varying needs and times of the day.

The first residential level is on the eighth story, with an open framework at the base providing connectivity and transparency across the ground level landscaping. This raised design meets Singapore’s building regulations regarding height and area, optimizing views and creating an integrated living and leisure landscape for residents.