Architect who led Pinnacle@Duxton project to join SUTD

He will be head of the uni's architecture and sustainable design pillar from Jan 1

- Kolette Lim

At the heart of Singapore stand seven 50-storey blocks. At 163m - just 2m shy of the Singapore Flyer - the Pinnacle@Duxton is the island's tallest public residential complex.

Designed to line up in curves, the blocks are unobstructed by one another and linked by sky bridges, "for every unit to get fresh air and sunlight," said architect Khoo Peng Beng, founder of ARC Studio Architecture + Urbanism, which designed the award-winning development.

Mr Khoo will soon bring his expertise to the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD).

From Jan 1, he will be a professor of practice and head of the architecture and sustainable design pillar at the university.

"Many famous architects helm the deanship of schools in the US, but in Singapore I think this might be the first, where research that's done in practice is being cross-pollinated into academia," he told The Straits Times during a Zoom videoconferencing call on Dec 9.

He will still contribute to his practice at ARC Studio, but adopt a more supervisory role and take a back seat during project execution.

The 56-year-old has spent 31 years in practice and has taken on multiple projects abroad, but his favourite remains the Pinnacle@Duxton, which clinched the President's Design Award in 2010.

As much as the glazing and cladding of the buildings are pristine, he finds a deeper meaning in their design - the emotions they evoke.