As Mandarin Oriental Singapore reopens its doors, it forms part of an iconic seaside context – when it comes to cityscapes, there are few as recognisable as Marina Bay, the downtown area built on 360 hectares of reclaimed land. Today the district is defined by striking silhouettes such as the Moshe Safdie-designed Marina Bay Sands, its three 194m sloping towers dramatically linked at the top by the expansive SkyPark, the Lotus-inspired ArtScience museum – also designed by Safdie – and the Esplanade Theatres, nicknamed the ‘durian’ buildings for their resemblance to the fruit’s curved, spiky outer shell.
