6 Battery Road sits in a prime location, connected to the City through Raffles Place, the nightlife of Boat Quay and Clarke Quay beyond and the culture of the Asian Civilisation Museum and Victoria Theatre on the opposite bank of the river. As such, it is intended that 6 Battery Road should retain a strong Social, Cultural and Business identity.
The design of the podium façade responds to the hexagonal shape of the prominent tower, with an enhanced geometricity featuring a series of tessellating glass triangles that emulates the shimmering waters of the Singapore River. This dynamic glass skin wraps the two main frontages and over the roof, and extends into the podium by way of an ombre ceiling that casts a vibrant effect across the ground level interior.
During the day, direct sunlight and its reflections from the water accentuates the facets and the frit patterns of the glass envelope. In the evening, carefully concealed and focused lighting further articulates the form and illuminates the entire podium. The striking form extends the podium’s presence and compels a new relationship with the river and the immediate urban fabric.
At night, the rock-like appearance of the existing tower façade is dramatically countered by a translucent skin of fritted glass, emphasising lightness of the building, as if a light box “floating” near the river. The lightness of the façade with its river reflections underlines the relationship with the water.
The façade glass is frosted and fritted, allowing light to scatter within the façade, giving the characteristic softness and glow onto the surfaces. The glass frits are also translucent, ensuring this soft glow effect is enhanced at the clear “vision” windows.
The use of hidden linear light is precise with indirect lighting revealing the tessellating canopy roof, accentuating the angular geometry of the canopy. This indirect light is reflected down to the restaurant areas to provide a soft ambient atmosphere for patrons to dine in comfort.
In contrast to highlighting the angular canopy panels, the direct linear lighting accentuates the geometric joint lines while providing code levels to the vehicular drop off.
For public circulation, the ground level has a linkway that runs the length of the podium connecting Battery Road to the riverfront seamlessly.
This link has a tessellating sculptural “Ombrae Ceiling” echoing the overall façade design, which consists of single shade grey aluminium panels, yet with several different pixel rotated in angles, thereby creating an illusion of different shades of grey and triangular forms depending on viewing angles.
Indirect lighting is cleverly concealed in the retail wall cove and ceiling, further revealing the Ombrae multi-facated ceiling. This concealed ceiling cove lighting along the perimeter also expresses a sense of infinity, false skylight effect, providing a sense of outdoor space. The technical challenge to meet the developer’s high illuminance level at the floor (300-500.lx) is achieved by these indirect techniques.
