Architecture
The former Asia Insurance Building was designed by one of Singapore's pioneer architects, Ng Keng Siang. Ng was a member of the Royal Institute of British Architects, and designed the Art Deco building after the prevailing Modern Movement. He also exhibited a strong liking for eclectic architectural styles. Ng had also designed the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry on Hill Street, and Ngee Ann Building which has made way for Ngee Ann City on Orchard Road.
The building has a L-shaped façade with rows of windows, and a concrete crown on its top. In 1955, to celebrate the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, a colossal banner was put up on the building's façade, and lights were decked out on the crown.
Other distinctive architectural features include a brass mail chute where mail could be dropped at a high point and collected at a central depository, a mosaic staircase with timber railing, a black granite five foot way around the perimeter of the building, and two Nero Portaro black granite Colonnades at the front. All these features, including the building façade and crown, will be conserved at a cost of S$60 million with the development of Ascott Raffles Place. Hospitality design firm Hirsch Bedner Associates is designing the interior of the suites.
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—John Ruskin (1819–1900)
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—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)