MOD Firm Profile English

MINISTRY OF DESIGN, FIRM PROFILE, 2015

CONTENTS

DIRECTOR OF DESIGN

CHRONOLGY

PROFILE

SERVICES

CONTACT

AWARDS & ACCOLADES

TALKS & EXHIBITIONS

MEDIA

SINGAPORE HQ: +65 6222 5780 | www.modonline.com | 20 Cross Street #03-01 Singapore 048422 MALAYSIA BRANCH: +603 2201 5222 | A-33A-5 Menara UOA Bangsar, No. 5 Jalan Bangsar Utama 1, 59000 Kuala Lumpur BEIJING BRANCH: +8610 59472180| 7F,Taihe Building, No.8 Luomashi Street, West District, Beijing, China, 100052 P 01

FOUNDER-DIRECTOR COLIN SEAH

“I have always believed in the power of space to transform - the banal into the poetic, the everyday into the sublime. My work seeks to create such spaces by redefining and distilling the elements of Place, Ritual & Perception to its core – I term this approach Essentialism.”

Architecturally trained in the US and licensed in Singapore, Colin Seah honed his sensibilities working for the likes of Rem Koolhaas and Daniel Libeskind. He also spent 4 years at the National University of Singapore’s Department of Architecture researching design pedagogy and serving as design critic.

As MOD’s Founder and Director of Design, Colin has been named Designer of the Year by International Design Awards USA 2010, and is a two-time recipient of Singapore’s highest design accolade, the President’s Design Award. He is also a two-time Grand Prize Winner of the Gold Key Award, the highest international hospitality accolade, named Hong Kong Perspective’s ’40 under 40 architects’ and Marcus Corporation Foundation Prize 2007 ‘emerging architect with potential for greatness’. Recognized as ”Rising Star in Architecture” by Monocle, Colin Seah has been invited by the Singapore Tourism Board to redefine Singapore as a destination for 2020 and beyond.

RESUME COLIN SEAH

1994 Photographer | Fashion & Architecture

1998 Architectural Intern | OMA, Rotterdam Architectural Intern | Studio Libeskind, Berlin

1999 B.Arch Cum Laude, Graduating Senior Award | University of Arizona, USA

2000 Architect | R L Binder Architects & Planners, L.A. Senior Tutor, Department of Architecture| National University of Singapore

2004 Founder & Director of Design | Ministry of Design Pte Ltd

2006 Winner, Best Design – New Majestic Hotel | President’s Design Award, Singapore Winner, Gold Award for Design Excellence | Interior Design Confederation of Singapore

2007 Winner, Interior Design of the Year | International Design Awards 2007 Grand Prize Winner | Gold Key Awards for Excellence in Hospitality Design 2007 Finalist | Frame The-Great-Indoors Award 2007 Finalist | Design for Asia Award 2007 Nominee | The Marcus Corporation Foundation Prize 2007, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee Black Collar Man of the Year 2007 | Arena + Louis Vuitton

2008 Winner, Best Design – BBH Office in a Warehouse | President’s Design Award, Singapore Winner, Gold Award for Design Excellence | Interior Design Confederation of Singapore Architect with Excellence | Perspective, Hong Kong, 40 under 40 awards Finalist | Contractworld Award 2009 Finalist | Gold Key Awards for Excellence in Hospitality Design 2008

2009 Rising Star in Architecture | Monocle Magazine, UK Grand Prize Winner | Saporiti Italia Luxury Tower Design Competition 2009 Member | Singapore Tourism Board Lifestyle Tourism Taskforce 2020 Member | Singapore Architects Journal Publications Committee 2009 Judge | Perspective Design Awards 2009

2010 Gold Prize, Multi-Disciplinary Design, Face to Face | Singapore Design Awards 2010 Speaker | Singapore Designers’ Series 2010 Speaker | Guzhou Design Week, China, 2010 Winner of 2 Gold Awards: Face to Face, The Club | Asia Pacific Interior Design Awards 2010

2011 Designer of the Year | International Design Awards USA, 2010 Speaker | National Heritage Board Conference, The Business of Heritage Conference 2011 Speaker | DesignEx 2011, Melbourne Design Superheroes | Film Feature in Channel News Asia Documentary Member of Steering Committee | Audi Fashion Festival 2011

2012 Outstanding Chinese Designer | IAI Design Awards, Shanghai Judge | World Architecture Festival 2012, London & Singapore Speaker | Asia Office Space Congress 2012, Singapore W Insider | W Hotel Singapore – Sentosa Cove Art installation designer | Space x Cubes Earth Day Installation

2013 Wave of the Future Award Winner | Hospitality Design (NYC) Next Gen Awards Chicago, 2013 Outstanding Chinese Designer Award | IAI Design Awards, Shanghai, 2012 Judge & Speaker | World Architecture Festival 2013, Singapore Judge & Speaker | Taipei international Design Conference, Taipei, 2013 Speaker | Asia Design Forum Roulette 2013, Kuala Lumpur Speaker | Archifest 2013, Singapore

2014 Red Dot Design Award | Durasafe Retail Gallery, Red Dot Design 2014, Germany Speaker | Maison & Objet Asia 2014, Singapore Speaker | Industry+ Forum 2014, Singapore Speaker | Datum KL 2014, organized by Malaysian Institute of Architects, Kuala Lumpur Speaker | Knowledge of Design Week 2014, organized by HK Design Centre, Hong Kong Speaker | Design Inn, Hospitality Conference 2014, Sydney Speaker | The Still Point, 2014, Hongkong Judge | Singapore Furniture and Industrial Design 2014 Judge & Speaker | World Architecture Festival 2014, Singapore

2015 SG50 Permanent Exhibition, New Majestic Hotel | National Design Center Creative Council Member | Diageo Lifestyle Speaker | Work Place Work Life Conference, Sydney Judge | Furniture Design Award, Singapore Furniture Industries Council Judge | World Architecture Festival 2014, Singapore

PROFILE

Questioning Convention

Ministry of Design was created by Colin Seah to question convention and redefine the spaces, forms and experiences that surround us and give meaning to our world.

MOD’s explorations are created amidst a democratic studio-like’ atmosphere and progress seamlessly between form, site, object and space. At MOD, we provide our clients services that transcend mere design skill sets or technical prowess. We prefer to start far upstream and instead of merely designing solutions, we design holistic experiences. The resultant design thinking then translates into a wide variety of possible downstream design applications and media: be it architecture, product design, interior architecture, branding, graphics, landscape or even the weaving of diverse disciplines into a single project.

We love to question where the inherent potential in contemporary design lies, and then to disturb the ways they are created or perceived – redefining the world around us in relevant and innovative ways, project by project. This, we declare, is real change, not change for the sake of novelty. Fortified with these aspirations, we begin each distinct project anew by seeking to do 2 things – to draw deeply from the context surrounding each project, but also to dream freely so that we might transcend mere reality and convention. Each MOD project endeavours to be delightfully surprising but yet relevant, distinctly local but still globally appealing.

Headquartered in Singapore and with offices in Beijing and Kuala Lumpur, MOD was declared a "Rising Star of Architecture" by the Monocle Singapore Survey 2010 and "Designer of the Year" by the International Design Awards, USA 2010. Our recent portfolio includes Vanke Qingdao Plaza, Ascendas Guangzhou Knowledge City, award-winning Vanke Triple V Gallery & UOL Edge Gallery (World Architecture Festival 2012), Tangs Flagship Store and Macalister Mansion hotel (Best Luxury Hotel at Gold Key NYC 2013).

Earlier works include the Barcode Office (Best Office in WAF Barcelona 2011), BBH Office (President’s Design Award 2008), Zig Zag House, Sho-U Restaurant (Gold Key Award Grand Prize 2007), Leo Burnett Office (Interior Design of the Year 2010, USA), SOHO China Sanlitun condominium, The Mark Business Park, New Majestic Hotel (President’s Design Award 2006) & The Saporiti Italia Luxury Tower (Grand Prize & exhibited at Salone de Mobile Milan 2010).

CONTACT: www.modonline.com| [email protected]

SINGAPORE OFFICE +65 6222 5780 20 Cross Street #03-01 Singapore 048422

BEIJING OFFICE +8610 59472180 7F,Taihe Building, No.8 Luomashi Street, West District, Beijing, China, 100052 北京市西城区骡马市大街8号泰和国际大厦7层 100052

KUALA LUMPUR OFFICE +603 2201 5222 Unit A-33A-5 Block A, Menara UOA Bangsar No. 5 Jalan Bangsar Utama 1, 59000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

AWARDS AND ACCOLADES By Award

Golden Pin Design Award 2014 Travel & Leisure 2013 Best New Hotels “It List” Taiwan Design Centre Hottest 63 hotels Macalister Mansion Macalister Mansion Destination 2013 Luxe List Design for Asia 2014 Macalister Mansion Hong Kong Design Centre, Hong Kong Bronze Medal, Retail World Architecture Festival 2013, Singapore Durasafe Retail Gallery Hotel Category, 1st runner up (Highly Commended) Macalister Mansion Red Dot Design Award 2014 President’s Design Award 2013, Singapore Red Dot Design, Germany Design of the Year, Finalist Durasafe Retail Gallery Macalister Mansion

Frame The-Great-Indoors Award 2013 Singapore Institute of Architecture Design Awards 2013 Frame Magazine, The Netherlands Interior Architecture Category, Finalist Finalist, Relax and Consume Macalister Mansion Macalister Mansion ISG Retail Week 2013, UK Design for Asia 2013 Best Small Store Hong Kong Design Centre, Hong Kong Durasafe Retail Gallery Silver Medal, Hospitality & Leisure Macalister Mansion Best Retail Concept of the Year 2013, Singapore Singapore Retail Association Perspective Awards 2013, Hong Kong Tangs Flagship Store, Tangs Beauty ID, Hotel Category, Certificate of Excellence Macalister Mansion Best Shopping Experience 2013, Singapore Architecture, Commercial and Retail Category, Singapore Experience Awards Certificate of Excellence Tangs Flagship Store, Tangs Beauty Vanke Triple V Gallery Hospitality Design Next Gen Awards 2013, Chicago FX International Interior Design Awards 2013, UK USA Best Retail Space, Winner Wave of the Future Award Winner Durasafe Retail Gallery Colin Seah Best Hotel, Finalist Macalister Mansion Asia Pacific Property Awards 2013 Best ID Show Home (Asia Pacific) Modern Decoration 2013, China UOL Edge Gallery Best Hotel, Annual Hotel Awards Macalister Mansion International Hotel & Property Awards, 2013 Organized by The Design et al, UK 33rd Annual Gold Key Awards for Excellence in Best Hotel under 50 rooms, Finalist Hospitality Design 2013, NYC Macalister Mansion International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show, U.S.A. Best Luxury Hotel Asia Pacific Property Awards, 2013 Macalister Mansion Organized by International Hotel Awards, UK Best Small Hotels Award Condé Nast Traveler's 2013 Hot List Macalister Mansion Hottest 154 hotels, selected from 1,000 hotels Macalister Mansion

HDF Luxurious Projects Asia Awards 2013, Singapore World Architecture Festival Inside Awards 2011, Gold Award, Best Luxury Hotel Design Barcelona Macalister Mansion Office Category, Winner Ministry of Design’s Office International Design Awards 2012, USA New Commercial Building Category World Architecture News ID Awards 2011, UK - Silver Best Office, Finalist Vanke Triple V Gallery Leo Burnett Office New Commercial Building Category – Honourable Mention Perspective Awards 2011, Hong Kong UOL Edge Gallery Commercial Category, Certificate of Excellence Leo Burnett Office WAN Retail & Leisure Awards 2012, UK Best Hotel / Retail – Finalist International Design Awards 2010 Macalister Mansion IDA, U.S.A. Interior Design of the Year IAI Design Awards, 2012, Shanghai Leo Burnett Office Outstanding Chinese Designer Award Designer of the Year Colin Seah Ministry of Design

FX International Interior Design Awards 2012, Best of Year Awards 2010 Singapore Interior Design, New York Retail Space, Finalist Best Office – Finalist UOL Edge Gallery Face to Face

Perspective Awards 2012, Hong Kong Best of Year Awards 2010 Finalist Interior Design, New York UOL Edge Gallery Best Retail – Finalist Prologue Bookstore World Architecture News Design Awards 2012, UK Effectiveness Award, Finalist Modern Decoration Awards 2010, Shenzhen UOL Edge Gallery Best Office – Gold Leo Burnett World Architecture Festival 2012, Singapore Display Category, Finalist Perspective Awards 2010, HK UOL Edge Gallery Heritage Design - Gold Trophy The Club World Architecture Festival 2012, Singapore Display Category, Finalist Perspective Awards 2010, HK Vanke Triple V Gallery Commercial Design – Certificate of Excellence Face to Face President’s Design Award 2012, Singapore Design of the Year, Finalist Design for Asia Awards 2010 Vanke Triple V Gallery Hong Kong Design Centre Home Environment Design – Merit World Architecture News Design Awards 2012, UK Zig Zag House Civic Buildings Award, Finalist Vanke Triple V Gallery Asia Pacific Interior Design Awards 2010 APID, Shanghai Singapore Institute of Architecture Awards 2012 Best Design for Office – Gold Interior Architecture Category, Winner Face to Face Office Ministry of Design’s Office

Best Design for Boutique Hotel - Merit COLOUR Award The Club Boutique Hotel BBH Office in a Warehouse Gold Award Best Green Design Award - Gold BBH Office in a Warehouse The Club Boutique Hotel Gold Award Sho U Restaurant Singapore Design Awards 2010 Designers Association Singapore International Design Awards 2007 Gold Prize, Multi-Disciplinary Design iDA, U.S.A. Face to Face Office Winner, 1st Prize Commercial Sho U Restaurant Saporiti Italia Design Award 2009 Winner, Interior Design of the Year Saporiti Italia Furniture Makers Sho U Restaurant Grand Prize Winner, Luxury Towers Competition 2009 Gold Key Awards For Excellence in Hospitality Design 2007 President’s Design Award 2008 International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show, President of Singapore, DesignSingapore Council U.S.A. &URA, Singapore Grand Prize Winner for Best Winner, Singapore Design of the Year 2008 Restaurant, Fine Dining BBH Office in a Warehouse Sho U Restaurant Gold Key Awards Best of Year Awards 2008 For Excellence in Hospitality Design 2007 Interior Design, New York International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show, U.S.A. Hospitality, Formal Restaurant Finalist for Best Hotel Room Royal China Restaurant New Majestic Hotel – Hanging Bedroom

Contractworld Award 2009 Frame The-Great-Indoors Award 2007 9th International Architecture Award Frame Magazine, The Netherlands for Innovative ID Concepts Finalist, Concentrate & Collaborate Finalist for Hospitality BBH Office in a Warehouse Sho U Restaurant Design for Asia 2007 Gold Key Awards Hong Kong Design Centre, Hong Kong For Excellence in Hospitality Design 2008 Finalist International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show, U.S.A. New Majestic Hotel Finalist for Best Restaurant, Fine Dining Royal China Restaurant The Marcus Corporation Foundation Prize 2007 University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, U.S.A. Design for Asia 2008 In Recognition of Emerging Architects with Potential for Hong Kong Design Centre, Hong Kong Greatness Merit Award Nominee Feb 2007 BBH Office in a Warehouse Black Collar Man of the Year 2007 40 Under 40 Awards 2008 Arena + Louis Vuitton, Singapore Perspective Awards, Hong Kong In honour of creative achievements in architecture and In recognition of 40 creatives in Asia under age 40 interior design Colin Seah honoured for excellent contributions in field of Architecture President’s Design Award 2006 President of Singapore, DesignSingapore Council, SG IDCS Design Excellence Awards 2008 Winner, Singapore Design of the Year 2006 Interior Design Confederation of Singapore New Majestic Hotel

SIA Architectural Design Awards 2006 180 Best New Hotels in the World Singapore Institute of Architects, Singapore New Majestic Hotel Hotel Category, Honorable Mention in assoc. with DPA New Majestic Hotel IDCS Design Excellence Awards 2006 Interior Design Confederation of Singapore Conde Nast Traveller, USA Hot List 2006 GOLD Award, LIVE Category Conde Nast Traveller Magazine, U.S.A. Klang Lane Apartment 60 Best New Hotels in the World GOLD Award, PLAY Category New Majestic Hotel New Majestic Hotel COLOUR Award Conde Nast Traveller, UK Hot List 2006 Actually Boutique Conde Nast Traveller Magazine, U.K.

By Project

Macalister Mansion Gold / Silver Awards: Gold Key NYC Best Luxury Hotel; Asia Pac Property UK Best Small Hotel; HDF Best Luxury Hotel; Modern Decoration China Best Hotel; Golden Pin Award, Taiwan; Design for Asia HK Silver Award for Hotels; World Architecture Festival Hotels 1st runner up Finalist: Frame Netherlands; FX UK; WAN UK; Perspective HK; International Hotel & Property UK; PDA & SIA Singapore Accolades: Condé Nast Traveler's Hot List; Travel & Leisure IT List, Destination Luxe List 2013

Durasafe Retail Gallery Awards: Red Dot Best Design Award 2014, Germany; DFA HK Bronze Medal, Best Small Store, ISG Retail Week 2013, UK, Best Retail Space, FX International Interior Design Awards 2013, UK

Tangs Flagship Store, Tangs Beauty Awards: Best Retail Concept of the Year 2013, SG Retail Association Best Shopping Experience 2013, SG Experience Awards

Vanke Triple V Gallery Awards: International Design Awards 2012 USA, Silver; World Architecture Festival 2012 Singapore Finalist; President’s Design of the Year 2012 Finalist; World Architecture News Civic Buildings Award 2012 UK Finalist; Perspective 2013, HK, Architecture, Commercial and Retail Category, Certificate of Excellence

UOL Edge Gallery Awards: International Design Awards 2012 USA Honourable mention; World Architecture Festival 2012 Singapore Finalist; World Architecture News Effectiveness Award 2012 UK Finalist; FX Retail 2012 UK Finalist; Perspective 2012 HK Finalist

Zig Zag House Awards: Design for Asia 2010

Prologue Award: Best of Year New York 2010

Ministry of Design’s Office Award: Inside Awards Winner 2011, SIA Winner 2012

BBH Office in a Warehouse Awards: President’s Design Award 2008, Design for Asia 2008, IDCS 2008, Frame 2007

Face to Face Awards: SDA 2010, Asia Pac ID 2010, Perspective 2010, Best of Year New York 2010

Leo Burnett Awards: Modern Decoration 2010, IDA (USA) 2010, Perspective HK 2011, WAN Finalist 2011

Royal China Restaurant Awards: Gold Key 2008, Best of Year 2008

Sho U Awards: Contractworld 2009, IDCS 2008, International Design Awards 2007, Gold Key 2007,

The Club Awards: Asia Pac ID 2010, Perspective 2010

New Majestic Hotel Awards: Design for Asia 2007, Gold Key 2007, President’s Design Award 2006, SIA Architecture 2006, IDCS 2006, Conde Nast Traveller 2006

Hu’u Bar & Restaurant, Bangkok Awards: Bangkok’s Best 2005, IDCS 2006

Actually Boutique Awards: IDCS 2006

Klang Lane Apartment Awards: IDCS 2006

Saporiti Italia Luxury Towers Award: Saporiti Italia Grand Prize Winner 2009

TALKS & EXHIBITIONS

_TALKS

World Architecture Festival, Singapore, October 2014 This is the 3rd instalment of Colin speaking and judging at the World Architecture Festival. This time, Colin teams up with our esteemed client, Mr Liam Wee Sin, President of the UOL Group, to discuss the process of collaboration and conceptualisation behind a series of 3 temporary show galleries from 2012 - 2014. Show galleries are becoming an increasingly prevalent and culturally common aspect of architecture in Singapore. Due to their specific program and brevity of existence, show galleries have evolved into a typical convention. Through the series of show gallery commissions, UOL and MOD sought to jointly question this convention in order to redefine the typical show gallery experience.

Design Inn, Sydney, October 2014 Titled “Living heritage”, Colin’s talk was aimed at the hospitality design community, to discuss how heritage can be adaptively reused, rather than simply preserved.

Knowledge of Design Week, Hong Kong, June 2014 Titled “Balancing Heritage and Modernity: Designing the Macalister Mansion”, Colin’s talk at the event organized by Hong Kong Design Centre, focused on straddling of the two worlds, heritage and modernity, and how the playful narrative was applied to a variety of disciplines.

Datum, Kuala Lumpur, June 2014 Themed “Rejuvenation”, Datum 2014 was combined with the Asian Congress of Architects conference. Colin Seah gave a 60min talk at the prestigious Datum event, exploring the firm's ethos to "Question, Disturb & Redefine" through a series of key completed and proposed projects. He discussed the conceptualization and upstream genesis underpinning these projects and focused on how they "Question, Disturb & Redefine" their particular genre, scale, typology or cultural context.

Maison & Objet Asia, Singapore, March 2014 Loh Lik Peng was Colin’s first client and design collaborator, and together they created the New Majestic Hotel, which launched in 2006. Titled “Crafting from Context”, Colin and Peng spoke about how context (cultural, physical, societal) impacts and informs design, suggesting that design directions and decision-making do not exist in a vacuum but are very much informed by context, enabling a rich milieu to be captured in its entirety.

Taipei International Design Award, Taipei, October 2013 Colin was invited to speak and judge in the Interior design categories for the annual design awards in Taipei, alongside Sashi Caan, President of IFI International.

World Architecture Festival, Singapore, October 2013 Making this Colin’s 2nd time judging at the prestigious WAF, Colin was invited to judge the categories of Future Projects – Leisure-led development and Offices. He also gave a talk on defining and implementing practice values of our firm.

Archifest, Singapore, October 2013 Titled “Tracing a Trajectory”, Colin was invited to speak about MOD’s growth and milestones, including insights on key decision making junctures on the firm’s development, at Archifest’s “Small is beautiful” conference 2013.

Hospitality Design’s Next Gen Forum, Chicago, June 2013 Invited to speak and receive an award in Chicago in June 2013, Colin is one of 5 international designers selected as a Wave of the Future honoree – this award honors those who are tested enough to be considered

accomplished, but young enough to be considered visionary. This award, conferred by Hospitality Design (USA), is awarded to Colin for his accomplishments in the Hotel genre, particularly for Macalister Mansion.

Asia Design Forum, Kuala Lumpur 2013 Organized by leading Malaysian architect Ken Yeang and Architectural Record’s Deputy Editor Clifford Pearson, this design roulette calls for a sequential series of short presentations and interviews, to engage discourse between speakers and audience. Colin is invited to be a keynote speaker, and the theme is “Scale: Does Size Matter?”.

Art4D Forum, Archifest 2012 Organized by Thai design magazine Art4D, this 1 hour forum hosted by MOD, saw Kelley Cheng, Adib Jalal and Colin Seah debate on the role of “place” in the creative process, e.g. whether the open plan works for or against creative design, and if the remote office enhances productivity. 40 architects, designers and members of public attended this event.

Demographically Speaking, 2012 Organized by Dream Interiors for the Saturday Indesign event, Colin and team gave a talk to describe the selection process, conceptualization of ideas and fabrication of the 3 poufs MOD designed for Kvadrat. The poufs were part of a 40-piece exhibition at Salone Del Mobile 2012, Milan, and 4 were selected for a Singapore Showcase.

Asia Office Space Congress, 2012 Organized for the real estate and property development industry, Colin was invited to give a 1-hour talk at Fort Canning on the topic “Demysifying the Creative Workspace. Targeted at government officials, investors, developers, heads of CRE, architects and real estate service professionals, Colin’s talk centered on the role of creativity in the workplace, debunking the myths surrounding making a space creative and featured several award winning creative workspaces.

The Business of Heritage Conference, 2011 Organized by National Heritage Board, the broad theme of this year’s industry conference (5 October 2011) is “Making Heritage Work”. Invited to show how MOD has turned heritage into an exciting and hip business with projects like New Majestic Hotel, The Club Hotel and Ashley Isham boutique, Colin Seah’s 45min talk will focus on how heritage comes in life in different ways.

The Library: Art Research and Methodologies, 2011 Colin Seah was invited to speak at the Art Ecologies session, featuring 5 curators who each presented their projects, influences and research methodologies. Hosted by The National Library in July 2011, this speaker series served to encourage public discourse about the conceptualization and evolution of ideas. designEx, Melbourne, 2011 Colin Seah was a Keynote Speaker at designEx, the leading event in Australia for design & architecture, held in April 2011. Spanning a variety of design disciplines, Colin presented MOD's recent projects and approaches to inter-disciplinary design. Fellow keynote speakers include Massimiliano Fuksas of Studio Fuksas.

Guangzhou Design Week, China, 2010 Organized by id+c, a leading design magazine in China, Colin Seah was invited to speak at the prestigious Design Forum, alongside EMBT, designer of Spanish Pavilion in Shanghai Expo.

Singapore Poly Architectural Forum 2010 Speaking as Keynote Speaker on the topic of Re-use, Re-cycle; Colin explained how MOD has sought to give heritage projects new life; e.g. New Majestic Hotel, The Club; Royal China, Actually and Ashley Isham boutique.

Asia Pacific Interior Design, China, 2010 MOD was conferred 3 awards at the APID Conference in Shanghai, in October 2010, and Colin Seah was invited to give a 40-minute speech on Hotel Design to a 1000-delegate audience.

Singapore Designers’ Series 2010 Organized by NAFA to increase public design literacy, Colin was one of five architects invited to give a Public Lecture. Titled “Question, Disturb, Redefine”, Colin provided an overview of the firm’s work and principles.

Seven Stars Conference 2008 Poised alongside the Hotel Show 2008, this conference brings together design experts, builders and hospitality owners for the world’s most prestigious hospitality event. Hosted in Dubai, Colin was a Keynote Speaker, invited to speak on the topic of “Simplicity & Sustainability”.

SIA Designers’ Forum: Emerging Design Practices in Asia 2007 At a SIA organized lecture, Colin Seah presented to Architects and Designers a selection of MOD’s most recent work in line with the theme of PLAY: Interdisciplinary Processes in Architecture and Design. MOD was selected along side key emerging practices to capture the spirit of the times.

STILL (want to matter) 2006 Colin Seah presented the design process and challenges behind the New Majestic Hotel at the symposium jointly organized by the Singapore Art Museum and the Department of Architecture NUS.

Rojak_04 2006 Colin Seah presented “Making Room – New Hotel Typology”, an elaboration of the design process behind the New Majestic Hotel at Rojak 04, organized by Farm, a local design collective.

_EXHIBITIONS

Design Week, Maison & Objet Asia, March 2014 Industry + was conceived by famed curator Yoichi Nakamuta and PC Ee to appoint and curate 6 designers in Singapore to design bespoke products for exhibition at National Design Centre. Titled Mirror 14.1, our design for the mirror explores daily rituals and the essence behind why we do the things we do, e.g. the act of viewing one's reflection and what it reveals about the viewer's motivations: vanity or insecurity? The mirror's dual tones and diagonal cut alludes to seeing the world through rose-tinted glasses as a position that cannot be sustained, thus begins to collapse onto itself.

Space x Cubes Earth Day, Space Flagship Store, Singapore 2012 One of 5 designers commissioned by Space and Cubes, MOD designed a tribute to Fritz Hansen’s Series 7 chair, celebrating how much impact his chair made, considering the amount of material used (in celebration of Earth Day and sustainability themes). The enlarged poster-like text says “if you can’t make a chair from this amount of wood (showcase wood block), you aren’t trying hard enough! Arne did!”

Milan Design Week 2012, Jil Sander Showroom, Italy MOD was one of two Asian designers picked to design a piece of furniture for Kvadrat, using Hallingdal fabric. MOD’s Demographically Speaking is a series of 3 poufs conceptualized from pie-charts showing Singapore’s changing demographic mix, and was exhibited at Salone Del Mobile 2012 as part of a 40-piece showcase by Kvadrat.

International Interior Design Exhibition, Taiwan 2011 Ministry of Design was 1 of 10 selected international designers showcased in this prestigious exhibition, in September 2011. MOD’s project showcase was the Zig Zag House.

Film Feature in Channel News Asia Documentary 2011 Titled “Design Superheroes”, this was a 20minute film feature on the firm, profiling Colin and his design team at work; showcasing the studio, award-winning BBH Office, and Face to Face office.

Made for Sam, Exhibition in Singapore Art Museum 2010 MOD was commissioned to redefine an eraser. Titled "Sometimes, you can't help biting the hand that feeds", MOD pays homage to the pencil by creating a case for it but also conversely eclipses the pencil by entombing it from sight.

Milan Design Week 2010, Fondazoine Pomodoro, Italy MOD’s winning Luxury Tower prototype was exhibited at the world’s largest furniture fair (Salone Del Mobile) by prestigious furniture makers, Saporiti Italia, together with a new bench design and a VIP lounge.

Louis Vuitton 2009, ION store Selected as part of a progressive, forward-thinking ensemble of creatives in Singapore, Colin Seah was the only architect selected to design a limited edition LV bag to commemorate its opening at ION Orchard.

Venice Biennale 2008, Singapore Pavilion Chosen to represent Singapore, MOD was invited to be a Supergarden presenter at the Singapore Pavilion. This show featured the best of Singapore’s creative talent, an eco-system of design thoughts.

International Design Awards 2007 Winners of the 2007 International Design Awards were honored in a group show of their winning work at the Museum of Design Art and Architecture in Los Angeles March 8-14, 2008. MOD was declared Interior Designer of the Year for this coveted design award based in USA.

Utter Rubbish 2007 Presented by Singapore Design Council, this feature exhibition of the Singapore Design Festival is themed “Utterubbish - a collection of UseLess Ideas". It brings together creative people to explore how design can create value and is a witty review of recycling, redemption and recourse through design. MOD will be showcasing its “Actually Boutique” project where all furniture and interior artifacts are reused and recycled.

20/20 2007 This annual exhibition showcases 20 of Singapore's finest talents across different media and discipline who capture this emerging creative culture at Singapore Design Festival. Selected by previous year’s 20/20 winners, MOD will be showcasing a variety of selected architecture and interior design projects.

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

Artravel. France Artichoke. Australia AR (Architectural Review). London Behind Bars. Frame, Netherlands Conde Naste Traveller. UK & USA I.D. New York D+A. Singapore Design Hotels Yearbooks 2007, 2008. Germany Destinasian. Indonesia Dialogue - Architecture, Design & Culture. Taiwan Frame. The Netherlands FX. UK Harper’s Bazaar. Singapore Hospitality Design Asia Pacific & Middle East. New York (inside). Australia idFX. UK Indesign. Australia Interior Design. New York Interior World. Korea International Herald Tribune. International Ish Design Magazine. Singapore Monocle. UK Shift. Japan Space. Hong Kong Surface. USA, China, Asia Tablet 10: Top 10 New Hotels. Tablet Hotels, USA The Home. Bulgaria Time. International Travel & Leisure. UK, USA, SE Asia, Australia Urbis. New Zealand Vivienda y Decorarcion. Chile Vogue Entertaining & Travel. Australia Wallpaper. UK