Online social networking platform Twitter approached Siren to design their new nesting grounds aka Asia Pacific headquarters in Singapore.
The design approach for the 22,000sqft fitout required the incorporation of local and regional influences in the environment whilst still maintaining Twitter’s global brief for a residential, boutique feels with a raw and rustic edge.
At Reception, guests are immediately greeted by a decorative screen made from 200 traditional concrete breezeway blocks, handmade by craftsmen in the region.
To complement the textural language of the breezeway, the casual meeting areas, micro-kitchen and commons feature traditional Peranakan concrete floor tiles – with splashbacks in a beautiful, glazed, ceramic tile with a floral motif.
One of the key design elements within the general office is the window-walls that wrap around the meeting rooms throughout the office, a subtle hint at the shophouse window facades seen throughout Singapore. Paired with traditional, decorative, metal grills, they not only provide a form of decorative screening in the office without blocking out the natural light from the facade glazing but also provide a framework for hanging pocket planters to add greenery throughout the space.
Siren also collaborated with established local artist and LASALLE faculty member Nicholas Ooi, as well as his Southeast Asian team – the new APAC office is designed with both the Twitter personality and Singapore in mind. It contains many nods and visual cues to Singapore’s rich heritage, from Peranakan-inspired tiles to classic 1970s HDB grills. This is fused with references to everything ornithological, so expect to see birdcages, birdhouses, twigs, and rooms named after iconic birds from the region — even mythological ones. Symbolising connectivity and the company’s geographical reach, a single length of blue twine links the capital cities across the region to form the outline of Twitter’s logo, with Singapore at the heart of the bird.
The overall space is a welcoming, yet refined home with familiar touches for TwitterSG; or as the Tweeps say-#home-at-last!
Project: Twitter, Singapore
Design Studio: Siren
Photo Credit: Siren
Website: sirendesign.com.au
