Last week, the President*s Design (P*DA) Award chose 8 winning recipients for its 2023 edition. The award that honors designers making a transformative and positive impact on the lives of Singapore’s society and the broader global community recognized Henning Larsen, BIG, and the Singapore Pavilion for Expo 2020 Dubai.
The P*DA presented two categories: Designer of the Year and Design of the Year. Organized jointly by the DesignSingapore Council and the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), the biennial award was given to two “Designer of the Year” and six “Design of the Year” recipients. Beyond the excellence of their design execution, the honorees demonstrated a genuine sense of purpose and mission that is consistent with P*DA's core values. The outstanding designs of this year tackle fundamental and systemic issues like consumerism and circularity, dementia and caregiving, climate change and sustainability, and show how Singapore is developing its best design practices that are applicable to enhancing lives worldwide.
Designer of the Year
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RIBA Announces the 30 Winners of the 2023 National AwardsLeonard Ng, Country Market Director, Henning Larsen, APAC was recognized by the Jury as a visionary leader in landscape architecture and champion for nature, who has shaped many of Singapore’s iconic green public spaces such as Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park, Kampung Admiralty, and Jurong Lake Gardens, while continuing to push boundaries to further Singapore’s “City in Nature” vision.
Tan Kay Ngee, Principal Architect, Kay Ngee Tan Architects was recognized by the Jury for his exemplary body of work in Singapore and globally over nearly four decades, and for his rich contributions as an architect, educator, and writer. From architectural projects such as the Old Bukit Timah Railway Station in Singapore, and a villa at the Commune by the Great Wall in China, to his prolific writing on the arts, architecture, and cities, Tan has made architecture more meaningful and accessible to all.
Design of the Year
The P*DA 2023 Design of the Year was given to six projects for their groundbreaking design achievements in one or more of the following impact areas: enabling economic transformation, improving quality of life, and advancing Singapore's brand, culture, and community.
CapitaSpring, by Bjarke Ingels Group, in collaboration with RSP Architects Planners & Engineers (Pte) Ltd and Carlo Ratti Associati, is an exemplar of the green skyscraper of the future. The striking addition to Singapore’s Central Business District presents a lush network of offices, residences, and recreation that harnesses the restorative power of nature to offer a new social realm for the building’s occupants as well as the general public to come together to live, work and play.
Hack Care: Tips and Tricks for a Dementia-Friendly Home, by Lekker Architects and Lanzavecchia + Wai, goes beyond clever wordplay on a local pun or a ubiquitous furniture catalog. It stands as a timely, important, and accessible toolkit to empower caregivers to provide a life of dignity and grace for persons with dementia. Through creative, affordable, and practical ideas, Hack Care democratizes and facilitates inclusive design with each thoughtful hack.
R for Repair, by Hans Tan Studio, seeks to illuminate repair as a transformative process that addresses the global waste crisis by inspiring a new attitude of care toward our possessions. The project shines a timely spotlight on consumerism by exploring how, with a little ingenuity, creative repair can both preserve meaning and breathe new life into objects. Through beautiful and delightful outcomes that highlight the emotional as well as functional value of repair, R for Repair shows that sustainability can be both desirable and purposeful.
Singapore Pavilion, Expo 2020 Dubai, by WOHA Architects Pte Ltd, is a showcase of how nature and architecture can co-exist to create a sustainable and liveable city. Taking inspiration from the theme “Nature. Nurture. Future.”, the pavilion was self-sufficient by design, seamlessly integrating nature, architecture, and technology to create a net-zero and nature-positive environment. The project was a true oasis in the desert that immersed visitors into a microcosm of Singapore’s lush and verdant landscape while serving as a prototype for more responsible and regenerative cities of the future
State Courts Towers, by Serie + Multiply Consultants Pte Ltd in collaboration with CPG Consultants Pte Ltd, is both a symbol of civic pride and architectural brilliance. Groundbreaking in its innovative re-conceptualization of the traditionally enclosed, low-rise courthouse into a contemporary high-rise development that is open and transparent, its designers took a sensitive approach to the existing site and created a striking design that metaphorically reflects the notion of a judicial system that is transparent and impartial.
Tebet Eco Park, by SIURA Studio Pte Ltd, transformed a once neglected and degraded public park in Jakarta beset with environmental and social problems into a vibrant green space embraced by the local community. Completed in just 15 months during the pandemic, the revitalization of the park went beyond a cosmetic upgrade, renaturalizing an existing concrete canal into a river with wetlands that better manages frequent flooding while cleaning the water.
