A Fashionable Life: Inside Managing Consultant Corinne Ng’s Brutalist Home

Having honed and cultivated a directional sense of taste—thanks to an illustrious career in fashion media and marketing that has spanned over 20 years—managing consultant Corinne Ng employs the same approach to her home curations as she does her wardrobe. The chic abode, which she shares with her husband Damien Low and two daughters—20-year-old Li-En and 16-year-old Kae-Lin—is the perfect backdrop to her expressive style and artistic narrative.

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Built from the ground up, the concrete-and-steel construct is the result of a two-and-a-half year journey embarked upon by the couple and renowned architect Edmund Ng, known for his modernist, clean-lined designs. Ng became acquainted with the architect through his wife Jazz Chong, a friend of hers who owns local gallery Ode to Art.

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While she deferred to her husband’s penchant for an industrial aesthetic and monochrome palette, Ng was very much involved when it came to injecting warmth and joy in colour. The couple’s shared love for brutalist architecture is reflected in the monolithic appearance of the house and the use of fair-faced concrete throughout. “I first visited the Barbican Centre in London when I was a teenager, and subsequently saw more brutalist architecture in Antwerp. It’s very cold and imposing but there’s something strangely comforting about it,” she shares.

The house’s quiet front is softened by an unassuming corten steel facade with a laser-cut pattern inspired by the foliage of a tree. It belies an intimate, fortress-like interior—a protected retreat for the family made cosy by light timber flooring and ceilings, tasteful furnishings, an abundance of daylight, and scenic views of the nature reserve behind the house. “We’ve looked out to see monkeys and wild boars eating our neighbour’s leaves and fruit,” recalls Ng.

Although plans for a basement fell through, a series of split-levels along with sightlines to other floors give the three-and-a-half storey house a spacious, multilayered feel. Stepping through the main door, one can descend a short flight
of steps into the open-plan kitchen and dining—the more social areas of the house that speak to the couple’s fondness for cooking and entertaining—or up the stairs to the more private living room. The two spaces were conceptualised to be separate, but also connected by way of the corridor on the second storey that is likened to an observation deck.

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Ng considers her favourite part of her home to be the kitchen, which comes as no surprise. Food is the heart of the whole house—the generous 3.5m Molteni&C kitchen counter by Belgian architect Vincent Van Duysen and a custom Maerich lighting feature on it are testament to that. It’s where family and friends gather to share food, conversation and laughter. A hand-tufted artwork by Kelsey Taylor Hunt, former merchandising manager of Etsy and a friend of Ng’s, complements the Naan dining table by Piero Lissoni for Italian manufacturer Cassina. “A construction feat,” says Ng as she marvels at the solid table top supported by slender-looking legs.

The grey walls act as a canvas for the couple’s collection of paintings and sculptures positioned in various nooks, passageways and rooms. An art piece by Indonesian artist Windu Pranata titled Summer Swift greets you as you walk up the stairs to the living room. “It’s like a doodle. I come home, look at this and go, ‘that’s my brain today.’ Art imitates life!”

Ng’s most treasured piece? A red hippopotamus sculpture by Richard Orlinski—one of the earliest investments the couple made in art—stands by the living room window. She also has a sentimental love for furniture that has borne witness to milestones in their marriage, like the white Cassina Privé Chaise Lounge by Philippe Starck that has followed the couple from home to home.

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Hidden behind a wall in the living room and closed off with a sliding door, the staircase—lit by British-Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid’s undulating Aria pendant lamp that required careful on-site assembly—leads up to her daughters’ bedrooms and her study. “The idea is that this becomes a two-storey apartment for my family. Nobody else can access it,” explains Ng. The study, which she shares with her husband on days they work from home, also sits a Steinway baby grand played by Ng and her daughter, Li-En.

The second storey is linked to the master bedroom through a black, angular steel staircase, enveloped by concrete and brilliantly lit by a skylight with an open view of the sky. “It was such a challenge to build. The contractor advised us to do it with two glass panels but Damien insisted on one; it cracked on the way up,” she recounts.

Outside the couple’s wing, The Priest by Vietnamese artist Van Tho, one of her favourite paintings, lends a pop of colour. Inside, a mix of black and grey shades as well as wood accents contribute to a calm and soothing vibe. Ng often lounges on the Wink Armchair by Toshiyuki Kita for Cassina, inspired by the spirited silhouette of Mickey Mouse. It adds a touch of fun and whimsy to the space. “For me, collecting pieces with a sense of humour is important. If it can still make you laugh years after you’ve bought it, you know it’s a worthwhile investment.”

This extends to her sartorial choices; she collects archival designs from some of the industry’s most venerated names. “I approach buying like a collector. A lot of my fashion items are collector pieces,” she says of her prized possessions—a 1996 Dior bag by John Galliano; an embellished long vest “akin to armour” from Prada’s 2018 spring collection; and a floral dress from Gucci fall 2018, “Alessandro Michele’s most bizarre collection”—which hang in her walk-in wardrobe next to the master bedroom. The Molteni&C wardrobe is also by Vincent Van Duysen, who designed the kitchen system downstairs. The design-savvy couple admires Van Duysen’s use of pure and tactile materials that convey a minimalist aesthetic. Her personal style, on the other hand, veers towards maximalism. “I like to experiment with clashing prints, like polka dots and stripes, or varied florals with a slight colour thread.”

Ng inherited her unconventional sense of style from her late mum, whose outfits, though pared down and understated, were often punctuated with an unexpected accessory. “Every now and then she’d appear with something out of character, like a brooch or a multi-strand tiger’s eye beaded necklace with a seahorse clasp. I guess even the most classic dresser has eccentric moments!”

In the same vein, her mum shaped the way she now makes purchases, with longevity in mind. “Whenever my late mum bought something, she really took care of it, which is why I now own these accessories from her that have been incredibly well-preserved,” she shares. “My father gifted my mum a Dior bag in the ’80s, which I still have today. It has the original Dior logo print. There’s also a vintage watch necklace that my mum used to wear with everything. It’s often the memories that make a piece.”

There is something intensely connecting about beloved pieces getting a new lease of life on a different generation. Ng’s collection of Jacquemus, Monse and Balenciaga ready-to-wear items have migrated to her firstborn’s wardrobe. “Li-En wants my very first Balenciaga City Bag in Anthracite (as old as she is) and has ‘reserved’ it. Meaning, ‘hands-off’ this, sister!” laughs the doting mother. Kae-Lin, on the other hand, has unearthed a fuchsia Calvin Klein bag. “I got it in my first job; it was so expensive for me at that point in time. Twenty-five years later, Kae-Lin has claimed it as her own.”

Like a hug passed down the years, Ng’s beautiful home provides a nurturing environment where family bonds are strengthened through shared moments.

Photographer: Natsuko Teruya
Creative direction: Daphne Tso
Stylist: Gracia Phang
Makeup: Toni Tan using M.A.C Cosmetics
Hair: Grego using Keune Haircosmetics
Photographer’s assistant: Daniel Oliver West
Stylist’s assistants: Larissa Wong, Raeanne Cheong