Shophouse, designed by Matthew Lai of Studio XMSL in Singapore. The home was designed to be long and narrow, absent of an internal courtyard, which varies greatly from the typical light flooded and well-ventilated shophouses seen in Asian lifestyle magazines. The architect decided to not bring in additional natural light, instead express these dimly lit areas by enveloping them in black while contrasting them with the well-lit areas, finished in pure white.