POW Ideas’ very first project in 2015. Situated directly across from Merchant’s Lane on the fringes of Chinatown, Wildflowers occupies two double-storey heritage corner shophouses. The brief calls for a bar, a restaurant, two private dining rooms and a kitchen. The design concept takes cue from the abstract imagery of flowers across various surfaces and materials, with both levels having contrasting personalities.

The bar and private dining rooms are placed downstairs as a crowd-puller and designed to be “flowers at night” – incorporating interactive colored lighting, floral wallpapers and bespoke rope curtains that we designed in collaboration with Penang-based macramé artist, Tumbleknots. The dining area on the other hand is placed upstairs, with ample daylighting from the roof oculus cast against a wall of potted greens. The existing windows are enlarged and incorporated with two-sided planter boxes with leather banquet seating nooks while the existing floor void is encased with thin metal cages for creepers to grow on. Tying both levels together is a vaulted stairwell cladded with warped acrylic mirrors and colored lighting – transporting customers from one dimension to another.