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1. Why is sustainability important in design nowadays?

The planet is in the midst of a biodiversity crisis and design has a significant role in shaping environments that are harmonious with nature and resilient in the face of climate change. Henning Larsen approaches landscape design with a systems design mindset; acknowledging that landscapes are intricate webs of relationships, where decisions impact the ecosystems, energy consumption and social dynamics.

Rifle Range Nature Park showcases a design approach with a deep contextual understanding. The park aims to rehabilitate the site and offer the local community with a space to appreciate the natural environment in Singapore. This initiative tackles biodiversity loss caused by encroaching developments on Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, one of Singapore’s last primary forests. 

2. How do you balance sustainability and commercialisation?

The global environmental issues faced over the years require an unrelenting effort to remedy. The situation will continue to deteriorate if no action is taken. Integrating sustainable design solutions adds long-term value to our projects.

3.  What are your future plans?

In landscape design, the uniqueness of each site, influenced by distinct conditions and possessing its own identity, ensures that no two designs are ever the same. This inherent individuality makes the future of landscape design an exciting prospect for me.

4.  What is your design superpower?

If we have a superpower, it is to clarify our stakeholders’ true needs and aspirations through a collaborative approach and provide win-win solutions that benefit all parties.

From that, we are able to build the foundation of any inspiring project. We pose critical design questions to redefine the problem statement for a larger end objective – working towards remediating climate change and loss of biodiversity. We aim to give the environment a regeneration boost, ensuring its sustained flourishing while minimising the need for intervention.

5. What is the best part about your job?

We believe that making the world a better place, playing a role in increasing biodiversity and being a part of people’s fond memories is a noble profession. Our designs contribute to the transformation Singapore into a Green City in Nature under the Singapore Green Plan 2030, the national agenda on sustainable development.

When people share the sense of pride, ownership and stories revolving around the landscapes we design, it is an ultimate indicator of a well-designed space and a great source of pride for us all at Henning Larsen.

1. Why is sustainability important in design nowadays?

Sustainability in design is imperative today due to its multifaceted benefits. Design not only minimises environmental impact by reducing resource consumption and emissions, it also has the power to intuitively guide customers towards sustainable choices.

Sustainable design can also serve as a tool to raise awareness about the environmental and social responsibilities.

2. How do you balance sustainability and commercialisation?

Successfully balancing sustainability and commercialisation requires the strategic integration of environmental and economic factors. This involves conducting thorough life cycle assessments and embracing innovation as a solution to sustainability challenges, paving the way for new business models and circular ecosystems. Through the optimisation of processes, waste reduction, and the use of eco-friendly materials, companies can improve efficiency, reduce costs, and promote long-term sustainability.

Educating consumers about the environmental benefits of products and ensuring transparent communication establishes trust and reinforces the link between sustainability and commercial success. Strategic partnerships with like-minded stakeholders and adherence to regulatory standards further enhance the overall sustainability profile.

A commitment to circular economy principles, scalable practices, and market research to align with consumer preferences empowers businesses to thrive economically while making positive contributions to the environment.

3.  What was the most difficult moment when developing your idea?

Pioneering Levande, the first appliance subscription service in Singapore, proved to be our most significant challenge. As the first of its kind in the country, we had no existing examples to reference, compelling us to educate customers about the benefits of this innovative approach. 

It was crucial to strike a balance between clear communication regarding the subscription model and providing reassurance about its value for money. Extensive research and testing helped us craft user-friendly information, highlighting both convenience and cost-effectiveness.

But the most rewarding aspect emerged: empowering users to be sustainability heroes. Levande isn’t just about appliances; it’s about contributing to a circular economy, reducing e-waste, and promoting responsible consumption. This resonated deeply with our target audience, who embraced the opportunity to make a positive impact, and we’re proud to lead the change.

4.  What are some new things that you learned about yourself and the users you were designing?

Working on Levande, we rediscovered the power of collaboration and agile project management. As a venture startup supported by Electrolux Group, we worked closely with the venture leader, Gaurav Julka, to navigate the unknown with creativity and resourcefulness. Like a startup company, we blurred the lines between designer and business owner, challenging thoughts and ideas together with the consumer experience always at the forefront of our minds.

Through testing and interviews, we discovered that Singaporeans have a strong desire for convenience and flexibility, with the subscription model resonating deeply. We also witnessed a growing environmental consciousness, with users willing to try out the new appliance ownership model to embrace Levande’s sustainability benefits.

5. What are your future plans?

We are planning to scale the Levande Subscription service in multiple markets across Asia Pacific. In Singapore, we will continue to iterate our value proposition and user experience as we pursue an ideal product market fit.

6. What is your design superpower?

Our team’s superpower is open-mindedness, and it is the foundation on which our success is built. We never limit ourselves to existing platforms, structures, or logic. Instead, we’re willing to replace an existing design if it means fixing a roadblock or achieving a better user experience. This willingness to experiment has helped us achieve the results we have today.

7. What is the best part about your job?

The best part about my job is that I get to create things that are truly meaningful to users, and have the potential to lead a change in the industry (like in the case of Levande). I have an opportunity every day to develop products and services that solve real-world problems and shape living for the better.

1. What are the key elements of Spatial Design?

Park Yourself is built upon community interactivity, context adaptability and pandemic-resilient principles that are integral to effective placemaking. 

The “People Parking Lots” are vibrant and colourful, offering a cheerful and welcoming space for individuals and groups to engage with one another while maintaining social distancing practices. The universal form and adaptable modular design allow it to effectively revitalise underutilised public spaces in diverse contexts and locations.

Overall, the project is dedicated to improving social activity, transforming public spaces into vibrant, inclusive and community-oriented spaces.

2. What is your favourite Spatial Design trend right now?

There is a growing emphasis on pandemic-resilient designs. The pandemic has transformed the way people use public spaces and highlighted the need for adaptability, creativity and safety. Open, versatile and interactive public spaces are becoming increasingly popular as they cater to the evolving needs of our society. 

Aligning with this trend, Park Yourself cultivates an interactive and engaging experience while promoting social distancing and safety. The placement of frames provides a visual guide for users to maintain safe distances from one another.

We believe that this trend will continue to shape the design of public spaces in the post-pandemic era, accentuating the importance of bringing people together safely in a vibrant and creative environment.

3.  What was the most difficult moment when developing your idea?

One of the most challenging aspects in developing Park Yourself was ensuring that the frames fit the average size of adults and children.

The process first involves meticulously drafting the silhouettes and dimensions of the frames that align with the human “scale”. To perfect them, we conducted hands-on testing within the neighbourhood by pinning life-sized drawings to the wall and inviting strangers to stand within the shapes. These amendments allowed us to fine-tune the design to ensure it was comfortable, accessible and safe for users. 

4.  What are some new things that you learned about yourself and the users as you were designing?

Through the design process, we had initial concerns that the cushions might be taken away and were deciding on whether to secure them down to the installation or leave them scattered.

However, during our soft launch, we observed something surprising. Children were having a great time placing the cushions around, building “pillow forts” and “stepping stones”. Their creativity flourished, introducing an unexpected layer of interactivity and enjoyment to the installation. This observation finalised our decision to leave the cushions as loose items.

It was a pleasant surprise that all cushions were accounted for, highlighting the community’s civic-mindedness and responsibility. This experience taught us the value of trusting the community.

5. What are your future plans?

Our future plans include expanding the Park Yourself concept by developing a second version of deployment in a broader range of underutilised and diverse environments. We are excited to continue revitalising public spaces and promoting the message of creative and interactive design.

6. What was the inspiration behind your product/design/idea?

During the pandemic, a lot of public spaces and playgrounds were closed. So we asked ourselves, “How can we design an installation in a public space that brings people together in a pandemic, while maintaining safe-distancing measures?”. 

This question became the inspiration behind Park Yourself’s response to create spaces that unites people while adhering to social distancing protocols during the pandemic. Our aim is to merge the social distancing in a playful, interactive and vibrant manner. In other words, we wanted to bring the “social” into “social distancing”.

7. What is your design superpower?

Our design superpower is the ability to transform ordinary spaces into an extraordinary experience. We see the hidden potential in public areas and turn them into vibrant, engaging and memorable spaces. 

This allows us to create designs that capture people’s imagination and invite them to participate and make long-lasting memories. We believe that design should evoke emotions and spark creativity.

7. What is the best part about your job?

The best part about our job is witnessing the positive impact of our designs on the community. Seeing families, friends and individuals come together to enjoy and interact with Park Yourself brings a sense of fulfilment and joy. 

We also enjoy sharing our design strategies and ethos with students and the creative industry, contributing to a culture of creative and interactive public space design.

1. What are the key elements of Spatial Design?

Key elements of good spatial design consist of ample natural lighting, materiality which engages our senses and a well-planned layout which meets the lifestyle requirements of the users. 

Good design is one that effectively balances aesthetics and functionality.

2. What is your favourite Spatial Design trend right now?

Our favourite trend is “Timeless” – that withstands the test of time.

3.  What was the most difficult moment when developing your idea?

The most difficult moment was when an intermediate terrace house’s typology was sandwiched between two structural solid party walls, limiting the amount of natural light and air passing through. Therefore, we proposed skylights and courtyards as part of the design.

4.  What are some new things that you learned about yourself and the users as you were designing?

We learnt to derive more design inspiration from users’ daily routines and developed a deeper understanding of their enthusiasm for gardening, dance, food and music.

Therefore, key spaces in the house were designed as communal areas to facilitate natural interactions.

5. What are your future plans?

As a design practice, we aim to further explore ideas related to inclusive design; creating spaces that embody dignity and beauty while ensuring universal accessibility to everyone.

6. What was the inspiration behind your product/design/idea?

We were inspired by homeowners that embrace the ‘Hygge’ way of life; a well-balanced quality of life without excessiveness.

7. What is your design superpower?

Reactive Adaptation

We can readapt to various design challenges or parameters, as well as react creatively with innovative solutions and thoughtful spatial experiences.

7. What is the best part about your job?

The best part of our job is the opportunity to foster new friendships with various homeowners and clients, and being able to witness their joy and delight in response to our designs.

1. What are the key elements of Spatial Design?

Elegant proportions – It creates a visually pleasing and comfortable environment.

Evoke emotions – Whether it’s a sense of calmness in a bedroom, excitement in a vibrant living room, or focus in a productive workspace, the design should elicit the desired emotional response.

Thoughtfulness – To optimise the layout for functionality, flow, and efficiency

A reflection of the brand or the homeowners – In commercial spaces, the design should reflect the brand’s identity, values, and culture. For residential spaces, it should be a reflection of the homeowners’ personalities and lifestyle.

2. What is your favourite Spatial Design trend right now?

Design trends emerge, fade or transform rapidly, thus we are not a fan of that. We stay true to our design philosophy of a narrative-driven approach.

3.  What was the most difficult moment when developing your idea?

The most difficult moment was when we had to think of ideas that are not commonplace.

4.  What are some new things that you learned about yourself and the users as you were designing?

In this industry, we are always learning. Pertaining to this project, we learned about breaking boundaries and thus perceiving a hair salon in a different light.

We learnt that users are sensitive to smell, it adds up to the whole experience of patronising a hair salon.

5. What are your future plans?

We will keep breaking boundaries and do good work. Hopefully we can advance and explore more opportunities to dabble in potential projects with clients who share similar perspectives.

6. What was the inspiration behind your product/design/idea?

The spatial design is inspired by the essence of ‘Coulisse’ which means ‘Backstage’. Thus the façade is designed in a way that the combed plastered walls flows like curtains and reveal a part of the backstage where the magic of beauty transformation happens.

7. What is your design superpower?

For Zoe, it is curiosity. The exploration of ‘what ifs’ to stretch the possibilities of a space and experience. 

For Jayelle, it is the ability to see beyond. Seeing beyond the floor plan, seeing beyond the brief and seeing beyond the delivery.

8. What is the best part about your job?

For Zoe, the best part is that there is no cookie cutter involved. Every client, space and brief is different. Every project provides a unique learning experience that fuels one’s design journey.

For Jayelle, the highlight is experiencing the job uniquely each day. One day might involve exploring layouts, the next solving problems on site, and the following week, pitching a project. It is truly a creative journey that is not mundane.

1. How do you stay up to date with digital design trends?

A mentor once told me that a person’s visual diet determines the kind of work that he/she produces. This message resonated with me greatly. She encouraged her mentees to be exposed to as many visual expressions as possible — be it through movies, album art, book covers, or any form of graphic paraphernalia.

Social media is definitely instrumental in the proliferation of digital design trends. It has diversity — which exposes one to a great variety of visual/graphical expressions. Of course, one has to discern whether a certain aesthetic or design pattern is a trend or a fad — that in itself forms a design practitioner’s visual diet.

2. What are the major steps in your creative process?

I will usually start by exploring existing design patterns/systems out there and select what could be appropriate for the project that I’m working on. A lot of it involves laying down some fundamental principles based on what we know about the brand, product, and its users.

Iteration is a time-consuming part of the process. Knowing when a design is “enough” is crucial — otherwise, you’d be iterating for perfection. Having an understanding of when a design is “enough” requires a good understanding of the product and the users.

The testing process will then be a reality check, a manifestation of the “Expectation/Reality” meme. Sometimes, I will be taken aback by how some users interpret my designs — having completely different interpretations against my original intentions. With the feedback that I get from testing sessions with the users, I will then head back to iterate and come up with creative ideas to induce that intended outcome that the product needs.

3.  What was the inspiration behind your product/design/idea?

The product was inspired by Pokémon games. One of the key queries that our staff received at visitor centres was the frequency with which visitors sought recommendations on places to visit. Tourists wanted to explore what’s around the area, and other parts of the island. I was immediately reminded of how Pokémon games encouraged that spirit of exploration — how maps can visually show any adventurer the territories and terrains ahead!

I particularly studied how the Pokémon handheld game displayed their maps — an easy-to-understand diagrammatic approach that allows any users to immediately understand where they are at and be able to orientate themselves. We then developed Singapore and all its districts in that format.

Turns out the diagrammatic maps became a hit with most tourists! It proved to be extremely useful — clutter-free, intuitive, and allows tourists to have a quick overview of what’s around them.

3.  What was the most difficult moment when developing your idea?

As with every new product, there will be a lot of second-guessing during the initial stages of development. With limited knowledge from research, our team had to make calculated bets and logical assumptions on which paths to proceed with development. It was a difficult moment that we had to navigate, having to constantly juggle between “what ifs” and the unknowns.

Oftentimes, in order to convey insights and understanding about users, we tend to refer to them as a collective group with similar socio-economic, generational traits. While that is convenient and easier to understand, it loses a lot of nuances that are critical to design. A retired couple travelling from London can have entirely different priorities and needs from another retired couple traveller from the Philippines. The cultural context from where they are from, their socio-economic background and their physical condition are some of the factors that will influence the differences between two seemingly similar groups of travellers.

The most challenging part is to figure out how to dissect the pie of user needs that we’d like to address, adopting the appropriate lens that does right by both the user and the business — that is excruciatingly difficult. 

4. What are some new things you learned about yourself and the users as you were designing?

On a personal level, I realised that my understanding of the world, the environment around me can be entirely different from others. Over time, that sense of awareness can be lost as I go deeper into my social bubble. It is through talking to users outside of my bubble that I can constantly remind myself of the differing life experiences that different users can have.

I also realised that I am more of a big-picture person through this process. While I do consider myself to be detail-oriented, some users that I spoke to can notice even the smallest detail that I overlooked. On a scale from 1 to 10 in terms of being meticulous, I guess I’m only a 6.5 or 7?

5. What are your future plans?

Being a UX Designer — the freedom to create aesthetically pleasing or eye-catching visuals can be diminished. It is designing based on facts and logical assumptions. I have always been enamoured by this motto — “designing with purpose,” and my current occupation allows me to do it.

Moving into the six-year mark as a UX Designer, a part of me wants to pursue the more creative, emotional, and irrational part of my brain. I would like to explore creating more art and illustration on the side just to balance out what I do in my full-time job.

The pandemic has fuelled this entire mindset shift about living life consciously, having a balance between work and life. My ultimate dream and goal is to work remotely in a different city, preferably in the countryside. The sheer stress of living in a fast-paced city often times can be detrimental to one’s health.

6. What is your design superpower?

Being in a lean team of developers, I have grown to be able to solve problems quickly and creatively.

Oftentimes, we’d have limited resources and short development time to test ideas, ensuring that concepts/features addressed user needs. It is under such limitations that good, fulfilling ideas are born.

7. What is the best part about your job?

Being able to see the world, for a moment, in the shoes of others. It might sound too “airy-fairy,” but it is true! I had the opportunity to speak to many travellers from different countries and different walks of life. A loud-spoken and cheery aunt from Mexico, a bright and optimistic young man from Germany coming to Singapore to work, a wistful old couple from Denmark who wants to revisit all the places in Singapore that he’d been to in the 1980s (e.g. Raffles Hotel) and a geeky couple from London who loved Singapore so much they could tell me about the lesser-known details of Singapore!

I was glad to have met these memorable people and many more through this job of mine. I even made friends with one of them and visited them during my recent trip to Europe as well.

1. What do you like most about Architecture?

The ability of architecture to connect different lives – humans, animals, and nature.

For Animal Shelter for House of Joy and Mercy, we designed a big roof where humans and animals can engage with each other in oneness, while being able to have their own space. We like the humbleness of the canopy structure, how it integrates with nature, and how it opens up spaces for animals to engage with nature and humans.

2. What do you see as important issues or considerations in your project?

For any architecture project, it is really important to consider the users’ perspectives.

In Animal Shelter for House of Joy and Mercy, our users are not just humans, but also dogs, particularly dogs who used to live in the villages but ended up being abandoned due to urban development. We studied village dog behaviours and learnt that they are quite territorial. This informed our design of the den as we wanted to choose a material transparent enough to allow sunlight to enter the room but also has a certain level of opacity so that the dogs cannot see each other clearly. In the end, we chose a particular glass block that could satisfy both criteria.

3.  What was the most difficult moment when developing your idea?

Architecture is about finding the balance between our own ideas, our client’s expectations, project constraints, and societal concerns. Difficult moments arise when there is an imbalance among these forces. 

4. What are some new things you learned about yourself and the users as you were designing?

Each project is a new journey that offers different lessons.

For the Animal Shelter project, we learnt a lot about perspectives, whether it is our own as architects, the clients’ perspective, or the users’ perspective. Compared to humans, dogs’ perspectives are ‘lower’ and closer to the ground. Therefore, we designed visual panels with varying heights to cater to both humans and dogs.

Furthermore, dogs’ vision of the world is also different because they have a different colour spectrum. We decided for the interior to be yellow because it is the colour shared by both dogs and humans.

4. What are your future plans?

Currently, we are working on different projects that span across various scales, from art installation and interiors to buildings and public space. We are happy to share that two of our projects in Hong Kong, ‘Phillips New Asia Headquarters’ and ‘Townplace West Kowloon’, will be revealed to the public later this year. 

Apart from that, we are also designing our new office at the moment. Our colleagues are very passionate about designing their own workspace and their involvement is incredible. The design is still underway, but we enjoy this passion project very much.

5.  What was the inspiration behind your product/design/idea?

Nature, people, and the city that we interact with.

6. What is your design superpower?

Our design superpower is our cross-disciplinary approach to architecture and art.

Our team is made of people from different disciplines, including architecture, product and graphic design, engineering, and sociology. Interacting with people from different professional backgrounds forces us to step out of the boundary of our own disciplines. It opens our eyes to see each project in many different, interesting ways.

7. What is the best part about your job?

To witness how drawings become physical reality.