ARCHINESIA ASEAN Seminar 2025: Ling Hao (Linghao Architects)

Ling Hao is a Singaporean architect who founded Linghao Architects in 2000 after completing his architectural studies at the University of New South Wales, Sydney.

He is known for his quiet yet deeply expressive architectural approach. His works focus on creating spatial experiences that resonate with everyday life. Ling Hao often explores the fluid boundary between interior and exterior, emphasizing natural light, local materials, and an intimate human scale.

His architecture has been featured in various international exhibitions, including the Venice Architecture Biennale (2009, 2018), the Under the 5 Trees installation at Esplanade Park (2019), and Bakul: Everyday Baskets from Sabah at Godown KL (2023). In addition to his practice, he has taught at the National University of Singapore and served as a visiting professor at the Singapore University of Technology and Design.

His sensitivity to social context and tropical climate has earned him numerous accolades, including the URA Architectural Heritage Award and the Habitus House of the Year in 2022. One of his notable works, the Godown Arts Center, was recently used as the venue for Indonesian Architects Week (IAW) Kuala Lumpur 2024, hosting an exhibition of 70 Indonesian architects.

For Ling Hao, architecture is not merely about form—it is a medium to cultivate meaningful relationships between people and their environment.

Education
1992 Bachelor of Architecture, University of New South Wales, Sydney

Experiences
2022, 2009 – 2011 Studio Master, National University of Singapore
2020, 2017, 2015 Visiting Associate Professor, Singapore University of Technology
2018 Workshop Leader, Porto Academy, Portugal
2000 Established Linghao Architects
1998 – 2000 Lecturer, RMIT La Salle
1998 – 2000 Established Ham Architects (with Tan Kok Meng)
1993 – 1998 Joined Tangguanbee Architects, Singapore

Exhibition
2023 Bakul: Everyday baskets from Sabah exhibition at Godown KL
2021 Open Books exhibition at Godown KL
2019 Green Green Tropical exhibition at Archi Depot, Tokyo
2019 Under the 5 Trees installation at Esplanade Park
2018 Swiss Architectural Award Exhibition (Candidate)
2018 Singapore Pavilion at Venice Architectural Biennale
2018 In the Silence of your Heart ( set design) at Esplanade
2015 Toto Gallery Ma 30th Anniversary Exhibition The Asian Everyday: Possibilities in Shifting World in Tokyo

Awards
2022 Habitus House Of The Year
2020 Habitus House Of The Year: Interior & Exterior Connection
2014 President’s Design Award

About ARCHINESIA Week #6 “The Making”
ARCHINESIA Week is an annual event organized by ARCHINESIA since 2017. This year, it returns for its sixth edition, taking place from July 2 to 6, 2025. As part of IndoBuildTech 2025 Part 1, ARCHINESIA presents six interconnected programs: ARCHINESIA Academy #10, ASEAN Round Table Discussion, Architecture Seminar, ASEAN Seminar, ASEAN Architects Book Exhibition, and the IMAJI Books Pop-Up Store.

Carrying the theme “The Making,” this edition explores the layered and interconnected processes that shape architectural practice across Southeast Asia. The Making invites us to reflect—not just on what we build, but on how and why we build. It celebrates architecture as an ongoing act of thinking, shaping, and reimagining the world around us.

About ARCHINESIA ASEAN Seminar “Making Space & Place”
The ARCHINESIA ASEAN Seminar is one of the most anticipated annual events for ARCHINESIA’s readers and audience. This session brings together architects from across Southeast Asia to share their thoughts and ideas around a focused theme. For this edition, ARCHINESIA invites four leading architects from the region: Ling Hao (Linghao Architects, Singapore), Eleena Jamil (Eleena Jamil Architect, Malaysia), Adi Purnomo (mamostudio, Indonesia), and Kulthida Songkittipakdee (Jenchieh Hung + Kulthida Songkittipakdee | HAS design and research, Thailand). The discussion will be moderated by Kamil Muhammad of pppooolll, Indonesia.

This year’s topic, “Making Space & Place,” responds to the growing challenges faced by architects and designers in an increasingly urbanized world—where the demand is not only for beautiful spaces, but also for ones that are inclusive, sustainable, and grounded in their local context. While space refers to the tangible, physical dimensions of architecture—its form, structure, and function—place speaks to something deeper: the human experiences, memories, and identities that give meaning to space.