The Inexistence of Imperfection; Istana Woodneuk

Along Holland Road lies the entrance to a contrasting landscape, from the manicured Singapore streets. The Ruins of Istana Woodneuk exist in central Singapore, adjacent to UNESCO Singapore Botanic Gardens, yet protected as a blind spot within its dense forest. Has Woodneuk’s ‘disappearance’ allowed it to truly ‘grow’ within this local narrative?

The thesis is a time-based transformation of the Ruins and its larger context. Juxtaposed against the clean street façade, passer-bys can now embark on a journey. Ironically, by allowing access, it can no longer exist as living architecture. Further north, an archival facility is introduced.

As time passes, roles are reversed. Woodneuk is preserved in ruinous state, while the archive takes off as a growing ruin, contrasting beside two conserved colonial bungalows.

This new landscape contains a juxtaposition of experiences and projects an alternate imagination, of architecture being respected as a growing entirety of form, landscape and stories.