ITALIAN EXCELLENCE IN THE HEART OF
SINGAPORE – A REVIEW OF MERCURIO DESIGN LAB
Set on 1,168,652.50 sqm of the Laguna National
Golf & Country Club—one of Singapore’s prominent golf and country club
since its inauguration in 1993—the brief for the project includes a makeover of
the existing clubhouse and the provision of a new hotel. Laguna Hotel Holdings
Pte Ltd knew they could count on the world-renowned Mercurio Design Lab not only to fulfill but exceed
their design brief. Lead by founder Massimo Mercurio the Italian studio has
undertaken a range of projects across Asia.
The existing clubhouse was a boxy-looking
building with golf facilities for players taking on the challenge of two
championship courses. The client wanted to keep the demolition of the old
pavilion to a minimum and incorporate it with the five-stary luxury hotel.
However, due to the changes brought particularly by the new MRT line, the
chance to work with a design from scratch arose. The announcement for the new
MRT line opened up to a more exciting and less constrained design and paved a
way to develop a concept that interacts better with the environment. The result
is a dynamic and single unified building that merges almost seamlessly with the
surging landscape of the golf course.
Mercurio Design Lab wanted to create a strong affinity
between the architecture of the structure and the beautiful undulating ground
of the golf course. Taking the gentle undulations as the inspiration, Massimo
Mercurio designed the project with a fluid swooping form that sweeps itself
from the landscape and curves to cover the two different functions—the
clubhouse and the hotel. The over-arching roof and shared glazed facade are to
marry the complexities brought by the two entities with a discrepancy in
height. The glazed façade draws light into the interior, and when seen from the
outside, has a beautiful illumination effect. The design composition also gives
visitors the perfect vantage point to take in the golf course and the gorgeous
natural scenery.
The newly emerged Dusit Thani Laguna greets
its guests with a curvilinear aesthetic that is also visible in the interiors
of the building. The success to craft and bring to life such a distinctive
design feature was the combined efforts of the passionate and highly creative
team of Mercurio Design Lab’s architects, engineers,
designers, and artists. This collaborative approach resulted in a
ground-breaking project that pushed the boundaries and excelled the initial
brief.
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To create an architectural design that would
meet practicality, connect with the people, and minimize the violence it would
bring to the environment is daunting. In the context of design, there was not
much technical difficulty in accomplishing the project, but the construction of
the roof, due to its unusual form becomes the main challenge. Hence, extensive
research to find the right technology that would accommodate the roof plan was
instrumental. Overall, the project faced some
roadblocks during construction, but as it now
stands beautiful on the golf course as one of the most remarkable buildings in
Singapore is well worth the effort.
The end product resounds well with the panel
of judges at this year’s The Luxury Lifestyle Awards. They were impressed by the measures that the Mercurio
Design Lab team has undertaken to bring about a revolutionary
artwork and build an iconic structure in the heart of Singapore. It naturally
concluded with the jury awarding the project with the title Best
Hotel Architecture for Singapore for the Dusit Thani Laguna.
Images Copyright: Mercurio Design Lab
Project name: Villa Lambda
Photo credit: TriZone Graphic Photo
Project name: Villa Otto
Photo credit: Aaron Pocock Photography
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