And now, the first Filipino designer condominium

MANILA, Philippines - For its first development in Makati, Robinsons Land Corporation (RLC) wanted to build a condominium that would showcase the best of Filipino design, so they turned to three renowned designers to collaborate on the project from concept to master plan to finishing touches. Architect Royal Pineda, and furniture designers Kenneth Cobonpue and Budji Layug are the designers behind Signa Designer Residences, which is under Luxuria, the high-end portfolio of RLC.

It’s not the first time the three have collaborated — Kenneth and Budji go way back to those early days of CITEM’s Movement 8, while Royal and Budji, who are partners in the firm Budji Layug + Royal Pineda Design Architects, designed Kenneth’s house in Cebu — but it is the first time that they are doing a project of this scale. 

Isn’t three designers one too many to be working on one project? Aren’t egos going to get in the way? Kenneth laughs and says, “Not really because we have worked together before, and for this one there is no specific delineation of roles when we were conceptualizing the project.”

“The word ‘collaboration’ is very important for us,” says Budji. “We don’t want to define where one ends and the other begins. From the time the concept, the look and feel of the building were being discussed, all three of us we’re very involved. ”

What will the two-tower Signa Designer Residences look like? Royal says the architecture is based on a tropical lifestyle, which means they’re using the outdoors to both incorporate the building into the environment and the surrounding environment into the building. Royal began his career in the firm of the late National Artist for Architecture Lindy Locsin. His and Budji’s firm was responsible for Discovery Shores Boracay and other notable projects such as The Trees in Bangkok, Grand Napalai in Phuket, and The Copper in Kuala Lumpur. 

“Unlike most buildings today in Metro Manila, Signa will be on 10-meter-high ‘stilts’ — it will not be sitting on a podium where developers like to put the parking area. The parking will be underground so we are free to utilize the ground floor,” says Royal. “Because it’s a corner lot, we wanted to use the three open sides to bring back the garden to a highly urbanized and dense area in Makati. The garden will not be enclosed — people can pass through it yet the building retains privacy for residents.”

The lobby will be another exciting space with Kenneth and Budji’s furniture pieces. They will also be making collections that homeowners can buy to furnish their units.

Known for his organic and witty design, Kenneth says he knew right from the beginning that working on a condominium building is different from designing for his collections because they have to follow a budget. “There’s always a compromise in everything that’s why it’s design — not art. I’m a designer, not an artist. Robinsons has a great vision, that’s why we went on board.”

Budji’s furniture can be seen in stores from Bangkok to Kuala Lumpur, San Francisco and Los Angeles. He was also the first furniture designer to be featured in Bloomingdale’s (his Giant Bamboo designs were showcased there in 1981). A graduate of industrial design from Pratt Institute, Kenneth is a winner of several design awards including the 2005 Design for Asia Award of Hong Kong for his Lola Chair, the Singapore Design Competition, and several Mugna and Katha Awards.

 “The challenge is how to make this work and still make the units affordable to people,” says Royal. “We want to set a new standard for residential buildings. We want to be modern in the approach and solutions, not just in the materials. We intend Signa to be a showcase of Filipino creativity and design, not in a prosaic and predictable way, but Filipino in the fact that it is the work of Filipinos for Filipinos.”

 “This is the first time that architecture, interior and space design, and furniture design are coming together at the very onset to collaborate in creating a beautiful, unified whole,” adds Kenneth.

Says Budji, “This will be about lightness and openness, about bringing the outdoors in. With our work here, we will bring back the Makati of old, when the city was open and green, so that when you as a resident comes home from work it will be like walking into a beautiful garden.”

Located at the corner of Rufino and Valero Street in Salcedo Village, Signa Designer Residences is also a partnership between Robinsons Land and Security Land, the real estate arm of Security Bank. “This being Robinsons’s first-ever residential development in Makati, we wanted to do something even more special,” says RLC senior vice president for sales and marketing Raoul E. Littaua. “We have always held Filipino talent in the highest esteem and each of our three designers has been responsible for some of the most memorable pieces to out of Philippine design.” 

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For inquiries, call 397-1888, 397-0101, 0922-8380888.