twentystories
chapter thirtheen
20 | 2024'01.20. W | sj
ECO SANCTUARY
Type: Condominium
Project completed: 2023
Near the heart of Singapore, lies a distinctive apartment that takes you away from the busyness of life and warmly invites you into a space centered around the Japanese philosophy of "ikigai."
True Luxury Lives in Restraint.
A quiet philosophy of living, where space is shaped as much by what is absent as by what remains. Rooted in simplicity and guided by intention, it invites stillness into the everyday, allowing the mind to soften and the senses to return to what is essential. Here, design is not about accumulation, but about careful curation, each element chosen with purpose, each detail allowed to breathe.​
"An intimate retreat, shaped by texture, nature and silence."
Soft, diffused light drifts across natural surfaces, warm timber and woven textures, revealing layers of subtle imperfection that speak of time, touch, and authenticity. Nothing is overly refined, yet everything feels considered. The palette remains quiet and grounded, drawing from earth and stone, sand and shadow, creating a gentle continuity that soothes rather than stimulates. In this restraint, there is a quiet confidence, an understanding that beauty does not need to announce itself.
Space unfolds with a sense of calm openness. Furniture sits low and unobtrusive, grounding the body and opening the horizon of the space.
"Designed to function, to lived
and to pause."
Objects, when present, carry meaning. A single ceramic vessel, a branch placed with intention, a worn surface that tells a story, these are not decorations, but quiet companions to daily life. Imperfection is embraced, not corrected; the irregular grain of wood, the uneven texture of plaster, the gentle aging of materials all become part of the narrative. This is the essence of wabi-sabi, a reverence for the transient, the incomplete, the beautifully imperfect.
In such a space, time seems to slow. The outside world recedes, replaced by a deeper awareness of breath, light, and presence.
A sanctuary carved in shadow and warmth. A private onsen within the city.
"Where light softens, and silence becomes a ritual."
More than an aesthetic, it is an experience, one that strips away excess to reveal what truly matters. In its stillness, there is depth. In its simplicity, there is richness.
