Urban living at its finest
Accomplished architect who has completed landmark projects
William Lim has gained a fine reputation in the architectural profession by successfully working on some major architectural projects around the world. This includes the Marina Bay Sands project in Singapore, where he and his team were the interior designers for the public and hotel areas. Another landmark project he completed with the same team of architects was the Raffles City in Chongqing. His recent project sees him working on The Aperture clubhouse and lobby, a scheme developed by Hang Lung Properties Limited.
What is CL3’s overall design concept and style for THE APERTURE Clubhouse?
I think The Aperture has a really beautiful view looking out. And also, we looked at this neighbourhood and the environment and felt that this is really a family-friendly area. So, our concept is really based on family and providing a timeless elegance in the design.
When I do design, I always think of the user of the building. In this project, we wanted to cater to the needs and the enjoyment of a family.
We feel that to have a kind of homey feeling is very important, and to give it the sense of a timelessness. That’s where we have made certain reference back to some traditional elements like the wood mouldings and elements like the wooden floor to make you feel warmer. And also, it would be enjoyable as a family gathering place. This is really what inspired me to come up with the design.
For the clubhouse facilities’ design, I think probably my favourite one would be the gym; it’s a good setup and it has this very beautiful view looking out, which is quite rare for Hong Kong. It has a lot of light coming through, so I think in the morning it would be a wonderful place to exercise.
We separated the wellness and the gym to allow the health club and the gym to remain open for 24 hours. Part of the design is to build in the flexibility so you can actually access one part of the clubhouse without going through the main lobby of the clubhouse.
The children’s playroom is a fun area. We fantasized about this kind of tree house in the jungle surrounded by candy. That became an inspiration; when we designed the lighting, it’s all based on lollipops and candy bars. And it’s also very colourful and has a very beautiful view of the city.
What do you consider to be the key features of THE APERTURE project? Which design element best showcases its unique characteristics?
When we planned the overall circulation and the function, the key aspect we thought about was the family and what the members of the family would be able to do here. So actually, we cater to the whole family and to children of different ages. There’s a playroom and also a study area for the teenage years.
And then, of course, there are the social spaces, there’s the pool, the gym room and activities that really embrace the notion of family value.
We want to create a timeless elegance. A lot of the panelling goes back to a more traditional, European architecture that is very warming. That’s the kind of reference that we draw on for the design.
To me, the interior design should reflect the architecture. The architecture itself has a lot of curves. It probably has to do with our proximity to the water. I think that wavy pattern is very nice to use as an element and also to soften the urban scape, because I think there are a lot of more rectilinear structures around us.
And to use it for the interior, it also helps us to soften up the circulation. Again, back to the idea of being very family oriented, we also want the young children to be safe in this environment, so we tried to get rid of sharp corners.
The main colours of THE APERTURE feature warm wood finishes paired with vibrant colours to enhance the visual effects of the clubhouse. Can you share the reasons for this colour combination?
To create this feeling of warmth, we actually used a lot of environmentally engineered wood that is sustainable. It gives warmth to the project and the wood flooring is very pleasant and projects a very cozy atmosphere, and it’s sustainable.
We wanted this to be a joyful place for people to really enjoy, where you can probably spend the whole day at the clubhouse. There’s a lot of greenery around and a lot of open views. The idea is really to blend in and bring in the nature into part of the interior and using colour and the choice of materials, using the more natural material to link up with the exterior views.
The use of stone and wood gives us ample opportunity to make a timeless design and bring in elements like the fireplace, bringing in the luxury and the warmth. And also, in our choice of fabrics for the sort of soft furnishings, we added colour to be able to make you feel more relaxed. Again, we want it to feel like a home for the family.
In the lounge area, we have a fireplace and it has a stonewall feature and warm, comfortable seating, features which are all customized for this project. In this project, we actually incorporated a lot of warm tones, like the brownish maroon colour, which also echoes the architecture of the project.
How do you balance functionality and aesthetics?
I think my philosophy about design is that it has to address both. So, in terms of aesthetics, we brought in divisions and panelling of the wall panels, and also in our panel focal wall with the fireplace and the way we divided the panelling is very special to this area. At the reception we use a multi-coloured glass which is part of bringing joyfulness and warmth to the project.
Functionally everything has to work and has to be very flexible. So actually, from this kind of family lounge, we could actually connect back to the music karaoke room, and from the gym we could actually have 24-hour access. A lot of these flexibility and functional requirements were first addressed and then we thought of the aesthetics.
We use both a combination of task lighting and also some decorative lighting. And the decorative lighting tends to be more simple, more contemporary, quite elegant, and that works together with a more traditional wood panelling to create a contemporary feel with a classical reference.
We have a lot of high windows so you can bring in a lot of daylight. That saves on the use of lighting, and we use sustainable LED lighting and a lot of environmental engineered wood which has sustainable certificates to back up the source.