Marina Bay Sands | Safdie Architects

Open since 2010, the Marina Bay Sands is an integrated resort located in Singapore. This massive design is by the firm Safdie Architects, with the project director being Moshe Safdie, whose prime inspiration for this building was card decks. The project area measures to about 845,000 sqm and was built on a budget of $5.7 billion US dollars, supposedly making it one of the world’s most expensive standalone casino properties.

Courtesy of Safdie Architects

The casino portion of the design has an “atrium style’ and consists of four levels of gaming and entertainment in one space totaling 15,000 sqm. In the center of this space is featured a 7 ton chandelier with 132,000 Swarovski crystals and 66,000 LEDs. Besides the casino there is also 74,322 sqm of retail and restaurant space, a flexible expo and convention center that includes one of the largest ballrooms in Asia that can host 11,000 people, two theaters with a combined total of 4,000 seats, crystal pavilions that hose shops and nightclubs, and an event plaza capable of hosting 10,000 people for a diverse range of local and international live performances. Other notable attractions include the museum of art and science that contains gallery space as well as a 3,000 sqm lily pond at grade level and has a palm measuring 80 meters in diameter and reaches 62 meters above grade.

Courtesy of Safdie Architects

The three hotel towers contain 2,560 luxury rooms and suites leading up to the Sands SkyPark. The SkyPark represents a tropical oasis spanning 340 meters long from the northern tip to the south end. This area of the resort brings together a public observatory, jogging paths, gardens, restaurants, lounges and a 1,396 sqm infinity swimming pool.

The entire park can host up to 3,900 people and within its lush gardens there are 250 trees and 650 plants. To finish off the resort, Marina Bay Sands integrates seven site-specific works by artists handpicked by Moshe Safdie to enhance the visitor experience. The art path features large-scale public works by artists including, James Carpenter, Anthony Gormley, Ned Kahn, Sol LeWitt, and Chongbin Zheng.