A LiLy-inspired sAnctuAry in ALAbAnG: Our LAdy OF LOurdes chApeL

IT S e asy to get caught up in the frantic and busy environment of a metropolis and once in a while, we want a space for solitude and prayer, somewhere to pause from life’s daily grind even for just a quick moment.

This is the idea that prompted Filinvest Alabang Inc. to tap the awardwinning Japanese architectural firm Hiroshi Nakamura & NAP Architects to design the Our Lady of Lourdes Chapel that welcomes anyone seeking a much-needed meditation and prayer within the busy city.

The chapel stands out amidst the sharp geometric shapes of nearby office and commercial buildings. It has a distinctive design inspired by an inverted white Lily—the flower that perfectly represents the purity of Mother Mary. The towering structure, with its graceful curves that seem to open up to the skies, definitely exudes a serene and comforting atmosphere.

Located at the River Park in Filinvest City, the project’s lead architect and co-representative of NAP International Kohei Omori noted, “It would be great if people can make visiting the Our Lady of Lourdes Chapel a part of their daily life. The chapel is here to welcome them.”

“We made the connection between the kindness and gentleness of Mother Mary to the Lily. Through this concept, we envisioned an architecture that gently embraces people, and when the sunlight reflects on the chapel, the purity of the white Lily is emphasized,” he explained.

The chapel being built on a hill further adds to its welcoming nature.

Omori added, “It’s quite visible from afar. There are two streets that surround the site and a walking path and bridge. Instead of closing it off to the surrounding areas, we wanted it to be very open to the public so people feel that they can always come and visit the chapel.”

These special qualities are complemented by the chapel’s sustainable features that ensure visitors remain comfortable while doing their reflections. “The top portion of the chapel acts like a funnel. Heated air is essentially exhausted to the outside, which will then draw in a cool air inside with the help of the creek nearby.”

He also shared, “Acoustic was also a very important criterion that we had to overcome [to enrich the worship experience], and because this is a place to reflect, we wanted to allow people to feel the passing of time throughout the day, through the natural light reflecting inside the chapel.”

For Omori who believes that design is something that should affect people emotionally and spiritually, this collaborative work with Filinvest and different craftsmen from all over the world is solid proof of this belief: “Just seeing how people interact with the building and looking at how they spend their time inside the chapel made us realize that we did succeed in allowing this to be part of their daily life, which was one of our goals since beginning this project,” he concluded.

“The dream for Filinvest City has always been to build an environment that inspires and enables possibilities,” shares Francis Gotianun, Director of Filinvest Development Corporation. “Once everything was built and done, we wanted to finally welcome her [the Chapel] to Filinvest grounds so that the community may have another space where they can feel safe, protected, and at peace.” ogy and intelligence backbone of Alibaba Group.

The Our Lady of Lourdes Chapel is open daily from 6 am to 9 pm. Regular masses are scheduled once a day every Saturday at 5 pm and twice a day on Sunday at 10 am and 3:30 pm. Mass on a First Wednesday and First Friday may be celebrated upon the availability of the priest.

“We hope that through this chapel, people can see that, amidst the vibrant Filinvest City, there’s always a safe space where they can be still and silent. We are happy to have worked with the expert team of Hiroshi Nakamura & NAP Architect to design the Our Lady of Lourdes Chapel,” said Don Ubaldo, First Vice President for Project Development Townships, Filinvest Alabang Inc.

For more information and chapel inquiries, visit the official Facebook Page of Our Lady of Lourdes Chapel @LourdesChapel.Alabang.

Moreover, the study observed that a spike in interest among local businesses is driven mainly by the rapid growth of the local data center market (78 percent) and the government’s steadfast plan for digitalization (79 percent). When it comes to selecting cloud vendors, security (85 percent), availability (74 percent) and expertise (62 percent) are the key factors considered by Philippine businesses, the survey shows. Businesses in the Philippines lead the pack on prioritizing security among its Asian counterparts followed by Indonesia (82 percent) and Thailand (78 percent ).

“Alibaba Cloud has prioritized providing highly scalable, robust and secure infrastructure to Philippine businesses. As we anticipate a rise in cloud adoption, Alibaba Cloud is committed to offering innovative and proven cloud solutions and services to Philippine businesses,” said Allen Guo, Country Manager for the Philippines, Alibaba Cloud Intelligence in a recent roundtable held in Makati City.

In the survey, the majority of the respondents revealed that insufficient training for employees is among the top barriers to cloud adoption. To help address this challenge, Alibaba Cloud has partnered with local IT-focused educational institutions—such as Asia Pacific College—to train and strengthen the cloud computing competencies of teachers and students as part of its efforts to support local digital talent empowerment in the Philippines.

“The future landscape of cloud computing lies in the hands of the next generation, and as educators, it is our duty to foster and nurture their digital talents. Our recent collaboration with Alibaba Cloud has been instrumental in accelerating our mission to equip students with the essential tools to thrive in the current scenario, especially with the rising demand for cloud computing in local businesses,” stated Rhea-Luz Valbuena, Executive Director, School of Computing and Information Technologies, Asia Pacific College, from the event.

During the roundtable, Alibaba also introduced new enterprise and sustainability solutions—including Wuying Workspace and Energy Expert—to meet Philippine customers’ intelligent transformation demands.

To provide Philippine businesses with unlimited computing power without making significant upfront hardware investments, Alibaba Cloud offers Wuying Workspace, a secure cloud-based solution that enables desktop environments to be created, deployed and managed quickly and easily.

American Standard honors bathroom space designers in Asia Pacific

By Roderick L. Abad

LIXIL, the pioneer of water and housing products, feted the winners and finalists from the American Standard Design Award (ASDA) 2023 during an awards ceremony and exhibition held recently at The Arts House Singapore.

Themed “A Home to Love, A Space for Everyone,” the ASDA aims to uncover the power of design in creating a well-loved bathroom space of a home.

On its second edition, the competition was launched and opened for sophomore and above tertiary design school students from 10 countries across Asia Pacific (AsPac): Australia, Cambodia, India, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

It received close to 1,500 entries—a two-fold increase from last year—which were adjudged by creative minds and thought leaders in each country and the entire region.

At the national level, a judging panel made up of architecture and design luminaries from each country evaluated entries from local participants.

The 1st prize winners from their respective countries were Azra Hrnjic (Australia), Riya Awati (India), Sin Ponleu from IndoChina (Cambodia/Laos/Myanmar), Grace Wong Jing Yee (Malaysia), Aevan Georgeline de Jesus (the Philippines), Rossalinda (Singapore), Marisa Chonpracha (Thailand), and Duong Pham Ngoc Hoai (Vietnam).

The regional contest had each of them evaluated again by the AsiaPacific judging panel to determine the APAC grand prize awardee.

Ponleu emerged as the victor.

“I am very grateful for this achievement; it has been such an incredible experience for me to move forward to higher levels. With this achievement, I will remember to keep pushing myself to improve and continuously learn new things, all in the pursuit of enhancing the quality of life through architecture,” he said.

For Arch. Le Troung, founder and chief executive officer of TTAssociates and one of the APAC jury members, judging this year’s designs was impressive as the contestants showed an in-depth understanding of each space, material, color, lighting, and ventilation conditions.

“Overall, the entries reflect clear purpose, attractiveness, allure, and high feasibility. And within it, there are technical elements, sanitary technology, convenience, and aesthetics as core values that we all aim for. ASDA has played a very crucial role in initiating and creating challenges for young designers,” he said.

This annual recognition was organized as a platform to hone and honor exceptional talent in the industry, according to LIXIL Global Design Asia leader Antoine Besseyre des Horts.

“We are thrilled to honor the winners and showcase their groundbreaking ideas. Through its rich history of over 140 years, American Standard has continuously set new benchmarks in delivering bathroom solutions that combine purposeful designs and pioneering technologies. American Standard continues to be trusted by generations for its progressive and dependable products. This event not only celebrates their achievements but also acts as a catalyst for further innovation and collaboration for sustainable architecture and design,” he said. Each of the national winners brought home a cash prize of $2,000. The APAC grand prize winner walked away with $5,000. They also joined in a half-day tour and a design workshop at the LIXIL Design Centre in Singapore.