Zarch Collaboratives Pte Ltd

10/08/2026

01/08/2026

Collaboratively Speaking No.11 Direct Interventions…. (?)

Calvin Chua (Spatial Anatomy) Spatial Anatomy Calvin Chua traced his research on Singapore’s strata malls and HDB neighbourhood centre shops. Zarch Collaboratives Ar. Eugene Tan brought it into dialogue with lived practice: rejuvenating Ang Mo Kio Town Hub and revamping *Scape in the Somerset’s youth masterplan.

The conversation kept returning to spirit vs. structure — the software of placemaking against the hardware of architecture. How much do you engineer through design, and how much do you leave open for a community to claim on its own?

And underneath both sits the question of market forces: rejuvenation isn’t just curatorial, it’s commercial — a mix of forces shapes what a revived mall and heartland centres become, beyond direct physical interventions alone.

25/07/2026

IAWT 2026 - A huge thank you to everyone who made our recent Collaboratively Speaking happen — Dr Shin Yokoo for the support, the students who brought their energy into the room, and all our guests who attended and joined in the conversation. Thanks also to the support by NUS DOA and Archifest.

NUS Department of Architecture
Singapore Archifest

21/07/2026

COLLABORATIVELY SPEAKING NO.11
Direct Interventions x Private Units, Public Life

Featuring Calvin Chua
Date: 30 July 2026, Thursday
Time: 7.00pm
Venue: #04-00, 6001 Beach Road, Golden Mile Tower

Singapore's strata malls have had their moment of public rediscovery from Peace Centre's creative takeover to Queensway's organic thrift-store revival - all part of a broader wave of nostalgia and renewed appreciation for these ageing, individually-owned spaces. HDB neighbourhood centre shops, despite facing the same fragmented-ownership condition, have had no such revival or awareness. Their story remains one of rising rent and negative externalities.

Drawing on research on Singapore's strata malls alongside new findings on rejuvenating HDB neighbourhood centre shops, this talk traces how that research expanded from one typology to the other, surfacing spatial and ownership strategies for rejuvenation that HDB neighbourhood centres have yet to seriously consider. With shop leases gradually expiring and the new Rapid Transit System potentially reshaping northern estates, HDB holds levers strata malls never had, despite the same fragmented ownership. The question is whether they'll be used and whether these spaces can finally be rejuvenated.

In dialogue, Zarch Collaboratives draws on the experience in rejuvenating Ang Mo Kio Town Hub and retrofitting *Scape for Somerset's youth masterplan, guiding these well-loved spaces into new life — a companion to Calvin's research on ownership, rejuvenation and public space.

See you there!!

11/07/2026

Zarch Collaboratives is proud to have been part of the Intensive Architecture Workshop in Tokyo 2026 (IAWT2026): Reimagining the Tokyo Sentō as a Future Commons.

Led by NUS Senior Lecturer Shin Yokoo (Dr), the workshop brought together architecture and design students and faculty from NUS, Tokyo University of Science, and Shibaura Institute of Technology to investigate the humble neighbourhood Sentō — and reimagine it as more than a public bathhouse, but as a new kind of commons where everyday ritual, social support, and disaster preparedness intersect.

The workshop unfolded across three venues — opening online to link Tokyo and Singapore for the kick-off, moving to Shibaura Institute of Technology’s Toyosu campus for a week of working sessions and guest lectures, and concluding at Tokyo University of Science’s Noda campus, where each group presented a final 1:50 model, presentation, and video envisioning the Asatte no Sentō.

It was a fruitful and inspiring workshop, culminating in a final review attended by professors, guest lecturers, and industry practitioners across disciplines.

Director Ar. Eugene Tan was humbled and grateful for the opportunity to share Zarch Collaboratives’ project on the rejuvenation of *Scape, as well as deliver a special guest lecture on the firm’s multi-disciplinary approach, sharing our competition entry for the Singapore Pavilion at World Expo Osaka.

Thank you to Dr. Shin Yokoo, NUS Department of Architecture, Assoc. Prof. Rumi Okazaki of Shibaura Institute of Technology, Assoc. Prof. Kozo Takase and Assoc. Prof. Osamu Nishida of Tokyo University of Science, along with all participating universities, professors, and students, for a truly meaningful exchange 🙏.

The experience of the IWAT 2026 will be shared in Singapore on 23 July ‘26 - Collaboratively Speaking No.10 - at Zarch Collaboratives.

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Rumi Okazaki
西田 司
NUS Department of Architecture

04/07/2026

18/04/2026

A proud moment for our team at Zarch Collaboratives and our project partners. In close collaboration with CAG, we are advancing the design and progressing on site. We look forward to bringing it to life - more to come in due course.

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