Djitsun Mall Bedok

Architecture

4 Sept

THE MAKING OF AN OASIS IN BEDOK TOWN

The reconstructed cineplex at Bedok Town Centre aims to blend seamlessly with its surroundings while still being a unique piece of work at a transient site of the transport terminal. The brief was to bring back a cineplex to the vibrant neighbourhood following the closure of the last cinema in Bedok, the iconic Princess Theatre that once stood on site.

Despite several constraints, including conceding prime retail areas at the first storey due to road widening affecting its original site boundary and to meet the landscape replacement areas, the building now accommodates six new cinemas with retail and entertainment amenities. The visual character and identity of the building were borne out of these constraints, resulting in a façade articulation based on convergence of both program and site planning context.

The upper segment housing the new cinemas is expressed as a curtain-walled block, with its lower floors expressed as a distinctive retail façade infused with vertical greenery. The motif and inspired form of the façade planter boxes pay homage to the cinematic heritage and history of the former theatre and site. At night, cinematic blue lights add to the building's visual appeal, emphasizing movement, rhythm, and order.

The covered walkway maintains an intimate human scale with nature, forming a natural green buffer to the busy street. Elements such as the planter boxes, cinema seating platforms, and perimeter walls were prefabricated and pre-casted for buildability around the deeply constrained site.

The result is a sub-urban district mall with character and identity, a design achieved based on simple responses to the client's brief, history, and site planning constraints. The small cineplex aspires to become a testament that meets the needs of the community while still being visually stunning and functional.

Year: 2018

Type: Commercial

Client: Overseas Movie Pte Ltd

Location: Bedok, Singapore

Scope of Works: