Saying goodbye to an architectural masterwork

THE iconic house at C-1 Holland Park was one of the first personal projects of the late architect William SW Lim. Built in 1963 partly as a favour to a friend, the elegant two-floor residence has a built-up area of 432 square metres and sits on a land size of 2,028 sq m. 

It boasts all the hallmarks of a modernist private residence – clean lines, cantilevered structures and a seamless blending of indoor and outdoor spaces. It has beautiful timber-framed fenestration and a V-shaped butterfly roof that distinguishes it as a building from that era.

The original owners of the house – the forensic pathologist Dr Tan Kheng Khoo and his wife Gunn Chit Siew – have both died. Their three children – two of whom now live in the UK – have made a difficult decision to sell the house.