Architecture Competition Pavilion Of Humanity: First Contact Honorable mention – Karlotte Kang and Kia Hong Ngiam

We’d like to take the opportunity to introduce you to one of our Honorable mention winners for our “Pavilion Of Humanity: First Contact” competition –Karlotte Kang and Kia Hong Ngiam from Singapore!

Kia Hong Ngiam and Karlotte Kang from Singapore

We are based in different countries and firms. Kia Hong is in Singapore, with DP Architects, and Karlotte is in Perth, Australia with Maarch* Architects.

DP Architects is a Singapore-grown multi-disciplinary design consultancy that has a large global presence and more than 1,000 staff across the world. With a people-centric design focus, the practice has over 53 years of design experience in a variety of typologies.

Maarch* Architects is a Perth-based architecture firm with a growing reputation for creating purpose-made solutions with quality and innovation. We are big on collaboration and idea sharing, creating value in working with clients, builders, developers, and consultants to deliver projects that inspire and excite.

Brief information about the projects that you/your company have been involved with. For instance, what scale have you focused on/preferred, any significant projects where the company/ individuals have been involved?

Kia Hong: I have been involved with a diverse mix of typologies, such as hospitality, residential, retail, offices and master planning. I prefer to work on a bigger scale, as it is a crossroad between architecture and urban planning. The impacts of a stroke on the site will result in the language and quality of space within that development. It is thus crucial to have efficient but meaningful design directions to cater for detailed designs, such as landscape and facades, to flourish from the initial direction.

Karlotte: Our company’s portfolio comprises a variety of projects, ranging from residential, commercial, hospitality to age care, childcare, and urban design. We also specialize in special projects, which includes architecture follies, facade renewal, and public artwork. While we take pride in offering effective and efficient design solutions, it is always enjoyable to indulge in some of our special projects where we tell stories through architecture languages, blurring the boundary between art and architecture.

What does architecture mean to you and what is the role of an architect in your society?

Architecture embodies so many dichotomies of our society: art & science, aesthetics & function, our primal needs and new technology, the built environment and nature... Architects are constantly seeking to strike the balance in meaningful ways.

Why do you participate in architecture competitions?

We both think that architecture competitions are a good way to exercise flexibility in design after years of working on commercial projects away from school. Commercial projects tend to be driven by stakeholder interests, and that draws away from a very pure and even wild form of design. Architecture competitions stretch the imagination, allowing for us to do stuff that we are unable to do in everyday projects.

What advice would you give to individuals who struggle to decide whether it would be beneficial for them to participate in architecture competitions?

Just do it. Every competition you join gives you experience that will become valuable when you enter another competition or advance your architectural career.