RBA is a creative studio of architects and designers based in Singapore. We are old-school craftsmen visualising a cutting-edge city of tomorrow.
We design forms and spaces that are sustainable, functional, and empower the people who use them. We are interested to take on any project that fits within the framework of a humane and sustainable urbanism.
The practice was established as an ideal environment in which the Architect can dedicate attention to every material detail. RBA is in the midst of completing a number of residences and is also remaking a number of old institutional buildings in Singapore.
RBA was founded in 2009 by principal Teo Yee Chin and has since built up an acclaimed body of work. Limiting the number of projects we take in, we have focused on delivering each project very well, starting from a thorough design and documentation process to close control of the construction works on site.
In 2020 Red Bean Architects was converted to an LLP, bringing in Zeeson Teoh as a partner.
RBA is a registered practice with the Board of Architects and the Singapore Institute of Architects.
Every work of Architecture should be an aesthetically coherent entity that contributes to society, activates the city, and enriches human history. There are several broader perspectives underpinning our practice.
Urbanism - We recognize urbanisation to be a continuing pattern in human progress. How can the city manifest scale, density and efficiency, but also express drama, excitement, and humanity?
Sustainability - How do we understand Earth's crisis and translate its abstract problems into solutions embedded in everyday practice? How do we reconcile our needs and our resources?
History - In rapidly developing Asia, respecting our past will be key to avoiding a faceless modernity. Beyond the conservation of old buildings, how do they teach us how we make the new?
Ethics - Architects affect lives in different spectrums of society - from the labourer on site to the people using the spaces. How do we distinguish right and wrong with changing contexts and subjects?
When RBA translates designs into reality, we apply the same depth of thought to consider construction as a precise science. With our mastery of construction techniques, we focus on elegant details that builders can execute.
Principal Architect and founder Teo Yee Chin is a leading innovator in Singaporean architecture and urbanism. He believes in the power of architecture to improve society. In 2017, Yee Chin was named one of 20 outstanding architects under 45 years old in the URA exhibition "20under45: The Third Edition". He was the top candidate in the 2008 Board of Architects Professional Examination in Singapore.
Yee Chin obtained his Master's of Architecture from Harvard University in 2003. From 1999 to 2000, he interned with William Lim Associates. From 2003 to 2005, he worked with Kay Ngee Tan Architects, honing his craft on small projects such as bookstores and houses. From 2005 to 2009, he gained exposure at Architects 61, playing a key role in significant projects such as Newton One condominium, Ocean Financial Centre, as well as People's Association Headquarters. Red Bean Architects was founded in 2009 to focus on a better integration of design and project delivery.
Yee Chin has taught at NUS and SUTD focusing on architecture and urbanism. He has given talks at SIA Conference, TEDx, Archifest and various schools sharing his ideas on human-centred design in the city. In 2016, Yee Chin designed and co-curated the Singapore Pavilion at Venice Biennale in the 15th International Architecture Exhibition.
Yee Chin has also contributed essays on architecture for the Straits Times and local journals. Since 2017, he has served as the Chief Editor of The Singapore Architect, the longest-standing architectural journal in Singapore.
Architecture invokes a personal experience in every individual user. The making of a building, however, always involves many people of diverse capabilities working together.
Our team consists of talented, astute and committed professionals who cover the conceptual, documentation and construction aspects of a building. The team has been carefully assembled to function together as a tight unit. We are constantly looking out for the best to join us.
