Drs. Z and Aivee Teo bring this compelling structure to life by combining Singaporean architecture, contemporary Filipino art, and a warm sense of family.
Tatler Asia

In Manila, where chaos and slow-going traffic are the norm, everybody shares the dream of creating the ultimate urban getaway, and Drs Z and Aivee Teo are a pair that can do it exceptionally well. In putting up their widely successful Aivee Clinics, both in the Philippines and in Singapore, both make sure to offer not only state-of-the-art cosmetic treatments but also elegant interiors and a holistic experience—a true extension of the comforts of home.

Their own place echoes this philosophy but was years in the making, with the property purchased in 2010 and construction taking place almost four years later. “At the time [2010] I was pregnant with my second child, and we figured we needed more room,” Aivee explains. “We started looking around and then we found this space, but we didn’t conceptualise right away.” Work on the Aivee Clinics and the recent completion of their Singapore home resulted in the project being shelved for some time; but when their third child was born, Z and Aivee decided it was time to build their Manila home.

Z and Aivee both prefer modern design, which they feel is reflected in Singaporean architecture, so it was natural for them to commission the same architects who had helped create their Singapore home. “There’s something very young about Singaporean design,” Aivee says. “I wanted a different look for us because we’re a young couple with young kids. I wanted the house to truly reflect our personality.” For construction logistics, the Teos flew in the architects Khoo Boo Aik and Malcolm Chua from the Singaporean design firm AVID once a month to work on the design, but commissioned the Filipino architect Anthony Nazareno to execute the work.

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Tatler Asia

This aesthetic alliance brought the couple’s vision of a city-based oasis to life, and allowed Aivee to hone her sense of style. Neutral colours bathed in warm lights dominate the indoors; according to Aivee, these reflect her personality more than pops of colour, which are quietly spread out in the house. Proclaiming herself a frustrated interior designer, she describes how she painstakingly researched furniture pieces that felt right for their home. “I found out that I liked the simplicity and durability of Italian furniture. I liked the clean lines, which made the pieces minimalist but still homey.” Among the many fine pieces found around the Teo home are an iconic armchair designed by Gio Ponti for Molteni & C in the living room, and a set of Kettal dining table and chairs by Rodolfo Dordoni that are a perfect fit with the outdoor lanai. Fabric and texture were important considerations as well.

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Having honed her personal aesthetic and a feel for modern-contemporary spaces, Aivee continues to obsess over pieces for the house. When she’s here, she likes to pay weekend visits to furniture stores and, when she’s abroad, she’s always on the lookout for what will fit in the house. Some buys on her recent travels have been the pink Moooi chest drawer for her daughter’s room and sleek leather stools by Poliform in the kitchen area. 

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Tatler Asia

While Aivee speaks confidently of interiors and furniture, her husband, Z, is more than happy to talk about his proclivity for contemporary paintings, which adorn almost every room in the house. “Art and the business of beauty, our industry, go hand in hand,” he muses. “If you want to make people beautiful, you generally appreciate art as well.” Along with the whisky bar, his special request was to deck the home with popular contemporary Filipino art, particularly artists whose works spoke to his age and interests: Jigger Cruz, Elmer Borlongan, Xian Cabanes, Jose John Santos III, Andres Barrioquinto, and Ronald Ventura, to name a few.

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Tatler Asia

Elmer Borlongan’s piece, the Stroller, hangs prominently at the dining area. Aivee’s favourite work is the Nica Acantilado and Lion piece by Efren Carpio, while Z’s personal favourite is a John Santos painting that was his first Filipino art buy. “The Philippines has so many good contemporary artists,” Z says. “And if you notice, the paintings reflect our time. To me, this feels right.” Rather than intimidate, these in-demand works give depth to the home and additionally express the Teos’ views on beauty.

Even the children’s bedrooms feature art pieces that reflect their interests. “Kenz [the eldest boy] loves to read so the Elmer Martinez piece of a boy and books is perfect for him. Kenzo [the second child] loves to play with little toys, so he can easily relate to the piece we got for him by Manuel Sintos,” Aivee shares. “As for Keli [the youngest], she loves anything pink so we took the liberty of choosing pink art pieces for her by Yeo Kaa and Marina Cruz.” The children’s rooms are themselves works of art and reflective of budding interests. Kenz’s room, which is a little more mature, recalls the streets of New York and makes use of his favourite colour, blue. Kenzo’s room is done in shades of green and shows his love for cars and creatures, evident from the special spot set aside for a large toy rhinoceros. Keli’s pink room features a big pink elephant and a furry white chair, as well as a collection of pink books.

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Z also shares that he likes to move the art pieces around and to mix and match them around the house. “Sometimes, Aivee and I will come home late at night and decide to move a piece here or there, and then we’ll hang it somewhere and sit down to enjoy it,” he says. This “habit” extends to their clinics, where he also sometimes brings the pieces. “Art brings life to whatever place you’re in,” he shares.

One of the home’s noticeably distinct characteristics is its structure. What greets you is not a typical front lawn, but a mesmerising acrylic pool that is by all accounts the first of its kind in Manila. “The pool is the highlight of our home, so we didn’t want it to be in the back,” Aivee says. “It also makes the front feel more open.” Flipping the traditional structure likewise helped the couple achieve their goal of creating an urban resort getaway. “Again, it’s something very modern. At night, the blue acrylic pops and it’s like looking at an aquarium,” Z says. 

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The marble flooring is another example of how meticulously they chose the materials. The Teo home makes use of Carrara marble, which originated in Italy and is famous for its white, blue-grey hues and soft veining which combine to give a timeless look. The material was flown from Tuscany to Singapore, where they cut the marble pieces based on the house’s floor plan. Z and Aivee personally oversaw the assembly of the tiles in the marble factory, which were then numbered and shipped to Manila. “If you check out the floors, the way the grains run in the marble aren’t random. They’re intentionally heart-shaped,” Z says. “The materials used in the house make for a unique story as well. Some of the stones are from Greece, the copper plates and acrylic are from America.”

Despite their preference for contemporary design, Aivee felt the house needed “something old” to bring in that spark of tradition. For her, it was a 30-year-old table from her mother, which is you immediately see when you enter the house. “My mum gave it to me when I moved into my condominium a few years ago,” Aivee shares. “It’s important for me to have it in my home and has made me realise that I don’t want everything to be totally new.” She adds that it also helps to break the too-modern look of the house and makes it feel more “lived in.”

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While the couple’s eye for detail is apparent, their philosophy of what make something truly beautiful goes beyond furniture, fine art, and structure. “The most important thing is that you’re happy, and that you have a reason to smile at what you see at home,” Aivee says. A typical weekend morning consists of having a family breakfast in the spacious lanai, with their three kids going for a swim afterwards. Sunday evenings have become precious memories: barbecuing marshmallows and eating steak on the roof deck, followed by a movie in the TV room with the kids. “My favourite spots are my dressing room, because that’s where I am most of the time, and the second-floor TV room, where the family hangs out,” Aivee shares. Meanwhile, Z’s favourite room is the den. “When I sit here, I have a full view of everything: the pool, the living room, the kitchen, the lanai, my art pieces.”

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Tatler Asia

Since they moved in, the Teos have also started to open their house more for entertaining, including play dates and pool parties for the kids, and their own grown-up dinners. Despite the foreign design, everybody has said that theirs is a house that truly feels like home. “For me it’s the love and warmth, and the relationships we’re building with our kids,” says Z. “When people come over, they feel that it’s more than just a beautiful structure or venue—it’s a happy place.”  

Credits

Photography  

Albert Labrador 

Production  

Mia Borromeo 

Styling  

Mia Borromeo