Wing on Life Building by Jeremy San
Completion: 1975
Architect: James Ferrie & Partners
Precast concrete building elements in the post-independence era are set apart by their greater scale, complexity and precision in form – a result of more sophisticated technology of the day as well as shifts in modern aesthetics by the 1970s. In a break from the tendency to reserve precast elements for non-structural decorative elements in the past, precast concrete was also employed in a novel manner as structural supports in the Wing On Life Building, now renamed AXA Building. Located along Cecil Street, the 20-storey office tower was touted as the first in Southeast Asia to employ the innovative ‘twisted mullions’ structural concept. Located along the periphery of the building on individual floors, these precast panels afford a column-free internal space with minimum obstruction and maximum useable floor area, while functioning as gigantic sunshades. Today, the dramatic and sculptural façade add much character to the glass and steel streetscape of the Central Business District.
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Approximate Size: 1 m x 1.234 m. Framed.
This is the original print that was exhibited at “Moderns in Our Midst: A Photographic Tribute to Singapore’s Modern Architectural Heritage” in 2015.
UV Printing on 3 mm white DIBOND with 10 mm square aluminium channel on 4 sides. Print does not feature the artist's signature. No other framing options available. No certificate of authenticity provided.
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A portion proceeds from Jeremy San's work will go to Singapore Heritage Society and Jeremy San's estate.
About Jeremy San
The late Jeremy San Tzer Ning was an accomplished architectural photographer based in Singapore, who documented local as well as regional architectural works in Malaysia, Hong Kong and China. Schooled in RMIT, Melbourne, Australia as an interior designer, his graduation thesis was an ambitious photo-documentation project of modern heritage buildings, which also spawned his photography career.
Upon graduation, Jeremy practised as an interior designer in the architecture office KNTA, and also collaborated with experimental design studios HAM Architects, LingHao Architects and AT Lab on various competition and proposals. His design training and practice experience gave him an empathetic eye as a photographer capturing architecture – whether historic, newly completed, or even under construction – as well as urban landscapes. He has been engaged by leading design firms including Alsop, Foster + Partners, Atelier Liu Yu Yang, K2LD, Formwerkz, KUU, Farm Works, UOL, DPA and ipli. His works are widely published, including in journals such as ish, Cubes, and SA. He was also commissioned by Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) to work on the Singapore 1:1 exhibitions (2005, 2007), and has collaborated with Studio Lapis on conservation documentation projects such as Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall. In 2012, he was awarded the Discernment Prize for the ICON de Martell Cordon Bleu photography awards.