Reading 'a sacred pause' for DP Architects' executive chairwoman Angelene Chan

Who: Ms Angelene Chan, in her 60s, executive chairwoman of DP Architects, one of Singapore's leading architectural practices with 900 employees and 18 offices worldwide. She was chief executive of the company from 2016 to 2021. She was conferred the President's Design Award in 2015 for her design of Sunray Woodcraft Construction Headquarters and named President's Design Award's Designer of the Year in 2018.

- Ong Sor Fern Arts Editor

DP Architects designed the Singapore Pavilion at Osaka Expo 2025.

"At any one time, my bedside table is a precarious little tower of five to seven books. They span architecture and design, Christianity and meditation, travel and books about Singapore. My reading depends very much on my mood at that moment sometimes contemplative, sometimes curious and, occasionally, simply hungry for beautiful images.

Art and architecture books are usually my first port of call. They are visual, uplifting and inspiring an instant reminder of why I fell in love with architecture in the first place. My latest acquisition is Tadao Ando's Youth.

Ando's work has long fascinated me. The way he orchestrates light, space is material are at once minimal and monumental, serene yet powerful. The book, which traces his early influences and the evolution of his architectural language, offers a rare glimpse into the making of an architectural master.