NTS Magazine - Issue 8

Singapore. This is one of those ones where we got so carried away, we decided to make a whole magazine about one place. We went on a trip, you see, and this is what hooked us in: designer Timo Wong of Studio Juju explained when we met him that his is a nation unburdened by the trappings that come with the kind of design legacy that exists in many other countries. This means Singapore’s creatives, artists, architects and designers, in Timo’s words, “have a blank slate”.  But this is not the Singapore you think you know, by the way. Sure, it’s elegant and sleek but it’s also gritty and playful and frankly, electric. From Three-D Conceptwerke’s vision of “fruitful living”, Hunn Wai & Olivia Lee’s camping gear hacks for their “zen speakeasy” apartment and the remarkable creativity of E Ian Siew’s inflatable lamps to the alluring qualities of Hans Tan’s provocative porcelain and the mystic world of painter/illustrator/tattoo artist/guitarist Wolfsloth – it’s quite the journey. The journey continues with three very different apartments too: one on wheels, one that conjures a balcony out of thin air and another that embraces all of its awkward angles, and we also sort you out with some practical advice from some local small-living experts with our Small Living Support Group. There’s also a very cute insider’s guide to Singapore mini zine stacked with the hottest travel tips that you can pull out and make yourself.