SKEW Collaborative is an architecture and research practice that started in 2006 in Shanghai, before expanding to Hong Kong and Singapore. The first conception of the practice began in New York City in 2000, vis-a-vis SKEW's inaugural exhibition at the Substation Gallery in Singapore. As the Chinese translation of SKEW, Pianjian 偏建 was conceived uniquely for a mode of practice in Shanghai, and later in Singapore. SKEW was briefly renamed sciSKEW between 2007 and 2010. Facing the need to reconcile these triangulated geographies, the cultural disparities between the cities became the raw material that feeds the studio’s work. Through an analysis of culture and the city, SKEW and Pianjian seek to create architecture that is relevant and elegant, but more critically, architecture that can increase awareness about the city and natural environment. In every project, SKEW and Pianjian will support clients to reassess their briefs, and examine architectural artifacts produced by their different cultures in order to design architectural strategies that can bridge, critique and translate between cultures and systems.
The practice has been featured at acclaimed design events and forums such as the 2004 Singapore Art Museum's “SENI” (prequel to the Singapore Biennale), 2007, 2009, 2013 and 2017 Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism/Architecture (Shenzhen & Hong Kong), 2008 Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo's “YOUprison” Exhibition, 2010 Beijing Architecture Biennale, 2011 Chengdu Biennale, 2011 Singapore Hub-to-Hub Public Art Exhibition, 2015's Para-Site’s "Luxury We Cannot Afford" Exhibition, 2017 Seoul Biennale, and many others. The practice has also received professional recognition such as the Singapore Institute of Architecture Design Awards, Chicago Athenaeum International Architecture Award, 50-Under-50: Innovators of the 21st Century, Perspective Global 40-Under-40, AD100, LEAF Award, Perspective Awards, and other accolades. The works of SKEW and Pianjian have been featured in professional magazines such as Detail, Space, T+A, A+U, UED, Architectural Record, Architecture Review, Architecture Review Asia Pacific, Singapore Architect, Bauhaus Now, Art Asia Pacific, as well as mass media such as Financial Times, New York Times, Business Times Singapore, Straits Times, amongst others.
practice
Through various professional, research and academic platforms, the leads of SKEW and Pianjian are committed to an inventive and culturally sensitive design practice. The leads are currently teaching at the University of Hong Kong and the National University of Singapore. They have previously taught at Columbia, Yale, Princeton, NYU and Pratt Institute. They have served in advisory positions at governmental agencies, think tanks and NGOs. [+]
SKEW Collaborative and Pianjian are looking to hire dynamic and creative designers with critical thinking skills in the Shanghai and Singapore offices. The design team is cosmopolitan in outlook, with an emphasis not only on design, but also on discourse, theory, and engagement with architecture and urbanism in expanded fields. Applicants should be skilled in modelling software, CAD, and Adobe. Our team is involved in all levels of design and construction, and welcome candidates that are able to communicate through drawing and verbal skills. [+]