This Singaporean architect was tasked to refurbish one of the highest placed hotels in the world

Visiting unique sites for work is de rigueur for architects, but how many can say they have trekked the Himalayas as research? This is what Goy Zhenru did in 2023 after her firm Goy Architects was engaged to refurbish the iconic Hotel Everest View – the only hotel in the world’s highest mountain range where every guestroom has a view of Mount Everest and neighbouring alabaster peaks.

“I had received a call from Sonia Miyahara asking if we would like to work on the hotel’s refurbishment. I immediately jumped and said yes to a Zoom call,” recalled Goy. Nepali architect Manish Kayastha had seen one of her projects in a magazine and recommended the firm to Miyahara. Hotel Everest View was developed in the 1970s by Miyahara’s father, the late Takashi Miyahara and designed by Japanese architect Yoshinobu Kumagaya. It is situated on Syangboche in the Kumbu region of Nepal, within the Sagarmatha (Everest) National Park – a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

“The hotel offers 360-degree views of the Himalayas mountain range that includes Mount Everest at 8,848m above sea level. Miyahara, who previously worked in Singapore, had returned to Nepal to help with the family business. It was her aspiration to make Hotel Everest View one of the best mountain hotels in the world,” shared Goy.

Her scope of work includes renovating the hotel’s interiors, reception area, restaurants and existing guestrooms. “We also started a plan to develop the trekkers’ rooms in the basement. The structure was prepared and designed for but never completed.”

To say that the site visit was an adventure is an understatement. Goy had just given birth to her son 10 months prior and was anxious if her body could take the three-day trek, even though she had climbed mountains before. “Sonia and her team decided that hiking up the mountain would give us more time to understand the geography and terrain, as well as observe the type of materials available along the way,” Goy explained.

The design team, including Goy and the firm’s Indonesian lead architect Dessy Anggadewi flew from Kathmandu via helicopter to Tenzing-Hillary Airport in Lukla – “often called one of the most dangerous airports in the world due to its short runway length,” said Goy – before starting on the 1,000m ascent to the hotel. Apart from mountain climbers, the entourage had yaks and dzo for company. The rudimentary, poorly insulated mountain lodges they slept in along the way meant the team had to layer themselves with blankets.

Altitude sickness hit Goy badly when they finally reached their destination. “I realised that I’d lost my appetite even though a delicious set of Katsu don with miso soup was presented in front of me,” she related. Using an oximeter, the Sherpas realised her oxygen count had fallen below normal levels. She was given support from an oxygen tank for an hour, wrapped in a thermal blanket and provided with hot water bottles before she felt normal again.

Despite the difficulties, Goy was mesmerised by the beauty that she encountered. “During the trip, we were serenaded by the giant mountains, the milky rivers of Dudh Koshi and walked across the Hillary Suspension Bridges, hung at an incredible height. Arriving at the hotel and seeing the 360-degree view of the Himalayas and Mount Everest for the very first time was definitely a humbling experience. There is something about the scale of nature compared to oneself that, strangely, gave me a feeling of surrender,” Goy described.

Due to the extreme topography, building materials for the original hotel were carried up by porters or in exceptional cases, flown in by helicopter. For instance, 6,000 porters hauled up the 450 cubic metres of timber used to build the hotel. “I knew that from a design point of view, we needed to replace only what was necessary and work with what was available locally,” said Goy, after understanding the logistical challenges. 

Her design will pay homage to the Sherpa culture, referencing the materials of daily objects such as woven baskets, Sherpa walking sticks, colourful Pangden aprons, and Sherpa beads. “Other common products like handmade Lotka paper, Allo textiles (made from nettle) and Dolpo yak wool blankets will also be incorporated, while the stone walls in the trekkers’ rooms will be applied with mud in the way that Sherpas do to insulate their houses,” Goy explained.

Telling stories through materials is what the firm has come to be known for. In most of her projects, the team seeks out regional craftsmen to customise elements like tiles, paper screens, artwork or furniture. “We will take trips to visit different manufacturing workshops to understand their capabilities and experimental products, and meet up with regional designers and craftspeople to see if we can incorporate their products into our projects,” said Goy.

For example, in looking for a translucent material for a residential interior in Singapore, she sought out Pak Naruse, a Japanese who runs Greenman Banana Paper studio in Ubud, Bali. “He owns a banana plantation that provides the raw materials for the making of banana fibre paper,” said Goy. The team worked with a local glass laminate specialist to laminate pieces of their designed paper in a panel for the sliding doors of the home’s bar. “The banana fibre paper’s original pattern on the custom screen can be seen when the bar lights are switched on, adding on another layer of detailing,” she highlighted.

Many of Goy’s works employ encaustic tiles designed in collaboration with Solo Design – a cement sand tile maker from Yogyakarta, Indonesia. In the another home interior, they designed a green motif on an outdoor tile that was embossed to address slipperiness when it rains. “The final effect is an attractive, one-of-a-kind, three-dimensional geometrical tile that adds a euphoric mood to the house,” Goy remarked.

She regularly attends regional furniture and building trade fairs to look for new collaborators. “Other sources are word-of-mouth from my regional designers and friends. Some leads were also discovered from Instagram accounts!” she said. Sometimes, an inspiration might also come from spotting something “tossed at the corner of a workshop” during a visit.

“Even without a commissioned project at hand, we would spend time researching and developing prototypes with the makers to have a set of ready samples to introduce to clients when the project is a fit. The idea is to create and prepare a series of regional materials available in our studio so that they form part of our unique design language,” Goy elaborated, adding that this also helps to support small-scale makers.

This curiosity about Asian crafts stemmed from her time abroad. Goy, who studied architecture at the National University of Singapore, did an exchange program at ETH Zurich in Switzerland. After graduating, she interned at Birchmeier Uhlmann Arkitekten in Zurich before returning to work in various Singapore firms including Richard Ho Architects and Forum Architects.

“My experience in Switzerland gave me an overall perspective of how I would like to practice architecture in Southeast Asia. I became more aware of regionalism and vernacular architecture, with their use of simple yet responsive details that respect and address our unique equatorial climate,” shared Goy.

She set up her firm in 2015 by chance when a friend asked her to work on Sukasantai Farmstay in Sukabumi, Indonesia. “Initially, I thought I would take six months of sabbatical leave to complete the project and find employment again later. One thing led to another as I managed to secure new projects within the six months,” she related.

The 12-room Sukasantai Farmstay was a perfect vehicle for using materials available in this region. “The land was the childhood holiday place of my friend Stephanie Moriyama. She and her mother wanted to give back to society and create more sustainable agri-tourism in Indonesia,” Goy explained. Taking advantage of the highland’s constant cool temperature, she created a naturally ventilated retreat where visitors can come to learn about the growing of organic crops and partake in health-and-wellness retreats in various areas such as yoga or pottery.

Goy now also has teams based in Chiang Mai and Bali. “Our studio structure evolved simply due to the needs of our colleagues. As working mothers, we needed a system that allows for flexible, efficient working regardless of our geographical locations,” she commented.

This has worked out to the firm’s advantage. “Our teams from Indonesia and Thailand can work closely with the craftspeople to create materials such as the tiles and furniture that we use in our projects. We have yearly office trips to touch base with one another and learn what we need to improve on for our projects,” she shared.

The firm’s portfolio comprises mainly residential works, but she is keen to apply her approach to other building types. “I also have a soft spot for restoration projects. There is something about spaces that have been through time and layered with different uses and materials; there are always pockets of details and stories waiting to be uncovered.”

Eight years on, the firm has a clear philosophy and direction “to always have a conversation with the site, the existing house, the surrounding landscape, the available craft materials, the culture and history of the space and the rituals of the users,” Goy contemplated. “Sometimes, I joke that we are like a team of archaeologists, always looking out for clues from the past and bringing them to our present time.”