using ocean plastic, MVRDV sculpts 3D-printed screen around tiffany store in singapore

MVRDV completes tiffany facade in singapore’s changi airport

Architecture studio MVRDV expands its sustainability practices to the luxury industry, landing in Singapore’s Changi Airport to design a sculptural facade that wraps around a newly-opened Tiffany & Co. duty-free store. Located in the airport’s Piazza Garden, close to the Moshe Safdie-designed Jewel Changi, the facade features a coral-inspired screen, 3D printed using recycled ocean plastic sourced with the assistance of Amsterdam-based company Aectual and Milan-based engineers BUROMILAN. Color-wise, a light and dark blue gradient engulfs the 3D-printed portion of the design, echoing the sensation of being submerged in deep maritime waters. 

all images courtesy Tiffany & Co.

3d printed blue coral motifs by aectual

In developing the design, MVRDV (see more here) identified a series of distinctive design characteristics that would speak to Tiffany & Co.’s identity and history, ranging from touches of Tiffany Blue® to the use of innovative materials, inspired by Louis Comfort Tiffany’s contributions to the world of glass art during the late 19th century. Also drawing from the brand’s design legacy are nods to flora and fauna throughout the store. The team’s designers looked to the local environment and Singapore’s coral reefs for a thematic anchor. Using the patterns seen in coral species as a guide, they designed a screen to cover the store’s facade with an organic, cell-like pattern. This screen foregrounds a layer of glass screen-printed with a color gradient, transitioning from the brand’s signature robin’s-egg blue to a deeper tone that references Singapore’s ocean setting. The technology task force at MVRDV NEXT helped to refine the pattern of the coral-inspired screen, developing scripts to ensure the design could withstand various stresses.

The Tiffany & Co. facade at the Changi Airport in Singapore

The next step in the innovation process was in the materials used to build the coral-inspired facade. 3D printing experts Aectual developed a technique to produce the 50-millimeter-thick screen using recycled plastic, including reclaimed and recycled fishing nets. By using this unusual source of recycled plastic, the design draws inspiration from the oceans and plays a part in protecting them. A particularly challenging task was to meet the stringent regulations for fire safety required in an airport; here, BUROMILAN solved the issue by adding a chemical to the mixture that is also manufactured using seawater. Beyond the eye-catching facade, MVRDV’s choice of calming blue tones finds its way inside the store in multiple ways: around the entrances, the screen is light blue at the front and dark blue at the back; this gradient is reversed in the very corners of the facade, with a gradual transition in between – a gradient in all three dimensions. 

3D printing experts Aectual developed a technique to produce a 50mm-thick screen using recycled plastic

the light and dark blue gradients find their inside the sotre

creating the sensation of being submerged in water

project info:

name: Tiffany Facade Singapore Changi 

client: Tiffany & Co. | @tiffanyandco

location: Changi Airport, Singapore

architecture: MVRDV | @mvrdv

founding partner in charge: Jacob van Rijs Partner: Fokke Moerel
design team: Jacob van Rijs, Fokke Moerel, Aser Gimenez Ortega, Elien Deceuninck,
Simone Costa, Monica Di Salvo, Xiaoyi Qin, Natalia Lipczuk, Yayun Liu, Jaka Korla
copyright: MVRDV Winy Maas, Jacob van Rijs, Nathalie de Vries
contractor: Grandwork
coral in recycled fishnet material: Aectual B.V.
engineering advisor: BUROMILAN – Milan Ingegneria S.p.A.
glass with gradient print: DDG Glass Pte Ltd

lighting designer: Cooley Monato Studio

year: 2023
total area: 142 sqm