Can and should a building have soul?
If so, how can we find it?
About Us
Founded in 2016 by Lim Shing Hui, L Architects is a boutique architecture and design office in Singapore.
We believe that architecture has the ability to evoke a wide range of feelings within us; to touch the human soul, communicate messages, stir empathy but also provide quiet delight. The search of how to do this keeps us motivated. We are passionate about the tactile and ephemeral things, as we are about the physical.
But evocative spaces need not be complicated. Simple, everyday spaces are rich canvases for exploring ideas.
Design Approach
We enjoy ruminating on the most mundane and banal subjects, giving them fresh perspectives as we uncover their innate beauty.
Curiosity pushes us to approach projects from original, and sometimes surprising standpoints.
Curiosity begets questioning. Hence, each of our projects starts with a question.
The Team
Ar. Lim Shing Hui
Lim Shing Hui is the Founding Director & Design Principal of L Architects. She received her Master of Architecture from the National University of Singapore. Her thesis project was under the tutelage of Professor Erik L’Heureux who is an award-winning American architect and educator based in Singapore. Prior to starting her own practice in 2016, she spent her formative professional years working in MKPL Architects. A registered architect with the Board of Architects Singapore since 2014, Shing Hui brings a spirit of curiosity and experimentation to her projects, with a particular focus on creating emotional connections with the spaces she designs.
In 2022 at the SIA Architectural Design Awards, L Architects bagged 3 awards as a relatively unknown firm. A Merit Award for the House of Trees, and the highest distinction conferred – Design of the Year & Design Award for A Brick and Mortar Shop, making her the youngest recipient of this honour to date.
Internationally, A Brick & Mortar Shop was longlisted in the 2022 Dezeen Awards, selected from a record-breaking 5400 entries across 90 countries. The project also received an Honourable Mention at the INDE Awards 2022.
At the recent SIA Architectural Design Awards 2024, L Architects was once again conferred a prestigious Design Award for the House of Parts project.
Tse Lee Shing
Lee Shing has more than a decade of experience in combining technical and aesthetic skills in the whole design process. His keen eye for details has brought many delightful projects from concept to completion. He has been heavily involved in L Architects’ high-profile projects. These include The Living Grid House, The House Apartment, Arcadia Garden Interiors, The Window Apartment, House of Trees and A Brick and Mortar Shop.
Loo Quan Le
Quan Le completed his Master of Architecture at the National University of Singapore under an industry scholarship. Before joining L Architects, he was employed at several renowned architecture firms in Singapore where he had the opportunity to work on projects ranging from mixed-use towers to high-profile integrated developments.
To Quan Le, good architecture goes beyond its visual appeal; it should be able to resonate with its users on an emotional level, while serving the practical needs of its users. As a young designer, he eagerly embraces every opportunity to broaden his knowledge and fuel his passion for design.
Amanda Chng
Amanda completed her Master of Architecture from the National University of Singapore in 2020, supported by BCA Industry scholarship. Under the guidance of Dr Nirmal Kishnani, her thesis explored creating self-sufficient communities by integrating an intensive farming landscape into urban heartlands, as inspired by her grandparents’ living farm.
After graduating, Amanda worked with several architecture firms and contractor on diverse projects, including civic projects, residential, hospitality and commercial. Her dream is to resurrect a traditional Japanese Akiya, but for now, she dedicates herself to design bespoke homes to reflect the untold stories and living footprints of those who lives within.
Awards
Top of the Class 2025 is an annual award presented to the most outstanding interior design studios that have performed consistently well over 2024.
Jury Citation: L Architects has designed 15×3 interiors in Marymount, Singapore. The 15×3 office is a 15-meter-long and 3-meter-wide micro-architectural space that reimagines the traditional workspace.
This project attempts to merge the concepts of a studio and an intimate dining room to fulfil programmatic resourcefulness. The design was inspired by its location, which places it between an interesting dichotomy of low-rise houses and industrial buildings, lending a new perspective to the work and social experience.
Conceived in 2000 as an international index of emerging architectural talent, the Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory is an annual listing of promising practices from across the globe. While always championing the best and most promising young studios, over the years, the project has showcased inspiring work with an emphasis on the residential realm.
Top of the Class 2023 is an annual award presented to the most outstanding interior design studios that have performed consistently well over 2022.
Jury Citation: The project elevates the shopping experience for kitchen appliances within a delightful space. The interior elements are made from commonplace materials like hollow bricks, unadorned plywood and the recycling of stone off-cuts. Innovation and good detailing deconstruct and re-assemble the cement bricks into free-standing walls, benches and reception counters, which order the shop’s layout. The resultant space evokes a strong emotional response akin to an art gallery. The combination of natural materials lends the interiors a timeless quality. The walls and display surfaces become backdrops for the products to take centre stage. To control visual clutter, the Architect balanced between the curated display of the latest products and the archival of older models stored in pull-out drawers below. This clever, unexpected approach satisfied the client’s brief. This project is wonderfully poetic and innovative at the same time. The architect has proven that designing sustainably adds immeasurable value. The Jury unanimously awarded this project Design of the Year, as the Architect’s sensitive use of the ordinary resulted in an extraordinary interior.
Jury Citation: The Jury acknowledges the success of the House of Trees lies in the architect’s re-contextualising of the urban surroundings of a residence through the use of deep, occupiable, lush landscaped balconies. Through design, this green buffer offers sun shading, respite and new uses to its inhabitants. There is also interest in the way the duplex was planned, allowing for connections between two households.
Jury Citation: L Architects has created retail space in Singapore that draws on raw materials for an atmospheric experience. The project is a multi-label kitchen appliances shop located in Singapore.
The starting point for the design was the expression ‘bricks and mortar’, used to describe the physical presence of a business or organisation. From this, cement bricks were chosen as the key component for the space. Further materials such as hollows bricks, unadorned plywood and off-cut stones were also used to offset the raw functionality of the cement material. The resultant space creates a refreshing and atmospheric retail experience that offers a sense of beauty that can be found in the ordinary, much like the moments of wonder created with seemingly functional kitchen appliances.