Main Facts: A Transcontinental Design Collaboration
When Bona Yoo and SangWook Lee packed up their lives in Manhattan to relocate to Singapore in 2021, they were prepared for the grueling 19-hour gate-to-gate journey—the longest nonstop commercial flight in the world. What they were not prepared to do, however, was abandon the distinct design identity they had cultivated during their years in the cultural crucible of New York City.
Rather than settling into a conventional suburban-style landed property favored by many relocating families in Singapore, the couple acquired a top-floor duplex in a centrally located building. Boasting expansive great rooms, an upper-level mezzanine, and soaring curved ceilings, the residence immediately evoked the volumetric drama of their former Tribeca loft.
To bridge their past life with their new reality close to Lee’s family and business, the couple enlisted AD100 architects Giancarlo Valle and Jane Keltner de Valle of Studio Valle de Valle. The resulting home is a masterclass in cross-cultural interior architecture. It marries early-20th-century European masterworks by Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret, and Jean Prouvé with Scandinavian textiles, contemporary blue-chip art, and bespoke millwork designed to protect and inspire their three young children: Connor, Jude, and Emilia.
Chronology: From Tribeca to the Lion City
The genesis of this transpacific sanctuary began long before the moving trucks arrived. Below is the timeline of how a remote, pandemic-era design partnership materialized into one of Singapore’s most compelling private homes.
- 2021: Yoo and Lee decide to relocate from Manhattan to Singapore to be closer to family. They purchase a light-filled duplex featuring a soaring, vaulted architectural envelope.
- Early Design Phase (2021–2022): Introduced by a mutual friend, the couple connects with Studio Valle de Valle. Initial brainstorming sessions take place over long meals, including a foundational kick-off lunch at Le Mercerie near the architects’ Canal Street office in New York.
- The Remote Construction Phase: Executed largely during pandemic-era travel restrictions, Giancarlo and Jane collaborate via 3D renderings and mock-ups, while Lee coordinates on the ground in Singapore alongside local project manager Iris Yeo.
- Material Sourcing & Custom Fabrication: Faced with local constraints—such as the unavailability of aged oak and strict environmental tolerances—the team pivots, using acid-etched fresh timber, replacing green marble with honey onyx, and instilling local artisans with a newfound appreciation for textural imperfection and patina.
- Completion and Arrival: The duplex is finalized just as the family expands with the arrival of their daughter, Emilia. The home seamlessly integrates a curated mixture of historical artifacts, custom Valle furnishings, and a living art collection.
Supporting Data: The Architecture of Memory and Pedigree
The design language of the Yoo-Lee residence relies on a sophisticated hierarchy of materials, periods, and provenance. The interior is anchored by an exceptional roster of historical and contemporary design items that reflect both the owners’ refined tastes and Studio Valle de Valle’s sculptural ethos.
- Architectural Pedigree:
- Primary framework influenced by early-20th-century titans: Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret, Jean Prouvé, Oscar Niemeyer, and Serge Mouille.
- Structural finishes featuring acid-etched wood planks (substituting for hard-to-source aged oak) and custom zinc paneling in the powder room.
- Key Furnishings and Rugs:
- Living area centered around a custom mohair Kevin sofa by Giancarlo Valle beneath a 17th-century Flemish tapestry.
- Library anchored by a rare, vintage Porslinsmattan rug by Märta Måås-Fjetterström.
- Breakfast room featuring 1932 dining chairs by Axel Einar Hjorth and a 1965 Paavo Tynell pendant light.
- Den centered around a custom Giancarlo Valle sofa framing a Frank Lloyd Wright table.
- Fine Art and Decorative Objects:
- Works by blue-chip and contemporary artists including Tracey Emin, Alex Foxton, Joel Mesler, Kenichi Hoshine, and ceramic installations by Elisabeth Vandeweghe.
- Vintage accessories such as a 1920s silver coffee set, a Mérida mirror by Mithé Espelt, and a patinated bronze low bowl by Carl Sorensen.
- Spatial Metrics: A top-floor duplex layout maximizing verticality, featuring a dramatic switchback staircase, curved ceilings, and zero sharp corners to ensure a child-safe environment.
Official Responses: Perspectives from the Owners and Designers
The success of the project hinges on a rare symmetry of vision between clients who understand spatial design and architects who refuse to rely on derivative tropes.
"We weren’t looking to re-create our life, but to carry forward what we loved most about it," explains Bona Yoo regarding the emotional core of the move. As an art advisor with deep roots in the gallery world, Yoo was uniquely positioned to guide the home’s artistic narrative. "We love having objects that spark ideas. We wanted to embrace living with art and design and expose the kids to it."
For SangWook Lee, whose background includes studying architecture at Columbia University and working for Rogers Partners, collaborating with Studio Valle de Valle felt like speaking a native language. "What I like about their work is that it never feels derivative," Lee remarks. "Everything is something they interpreted on their own."
Giancarlo Valle echoes this sentiment, praising Lee’s professional literacy in space-making. "The process was great because we were speaking to a peer," Giancarlo notes. "He was already fluent in space-making."
Jane Keltner de Valle emphasizes the personal evolution of the project, noting how professional boundaries dissolved into genuine friendship. "Each meeting became an exchange of ideas, references, and possibilities… they have become our friends themselves."
Implications: Redefining Expatriate Design Paradigms
The Yoo-Lee residence offers a profound lesson for global expatriates and interior designers alike. For decades, the dominant narrative of relocating to tropical or fast-developing Asian hubs like Singapore centered on adopting a localized vernacular: minimalist white spaces, sleek surfaces, and sterile, sun-drenched layouts designed to combat humidity.
Yoo and Lee’s duplex turns this paradigm on its head. By deliberately injecting the "grit," texture, and soulful patina of a New York loft into a Southeast Asian high-rise, they prove that global mobility does not require cultural erasure.
Embracing Patina in Humid Climates:
One of the most significant technical implications of the project was overcoming local craftsmanship standards. Singapore’s construction market traditionally prizes immaculate, flawless finishes. However, the design team actively coached local artisans to embrace variation—rehearsing plaster applications to avoid uniform flatness and allowing acid-etched woods to interact dynamically with the tropical humidity. The result is a living environment that wears its history proudly. Rather than fighting the climate with fragile materials, the home utilizes honey onyx, patinated bronze, zinc paneling, and mohair fabrics that actually improve with age and atmospheric exposure.
Child-Centric Architectural Whimsy:
Furthermore, the home challenges the notion that high-design, museum-quality interiors are inherently incompatible with young children. By working closely with the arching geometry of the vaulted ceiling, Studio Valle de Valle crafted a child-friendly language of curves. Sharp corners were systematically eliminated—from the scalloped woodwork of the primary bath to the sinewy built-in bunk beds draped in Décors Barbares fabric.
The Psychological Anchor:
Ultimately, the implications of this architectural feat are deeply psychological. Relocating across the globe is notoriously stressful, particularly when expanding a family and balancing enterprise demands. As Yoo observes, being surrounded by objects, books, and artworks that inspire them transformed a potentially jarring displacement into a graceful evolution.
"Being in a home that feels comfortable, surrounded by what inspires us, helped that transition," Yoo concludes. "We brought who we are with us." In an increasingly homogenized global real estate market, the Yoo-Lee duplex stands as a powerful testament to the fact that while you can leave New York, New York—when designed with intent, soul, and uncompromising vision—will never truly leave you.
