Century Properties launches world’s first livable art park

When city living becomes very stressful, some people go to nature parks while others want to be surrounded by beautiful works of art. What if you could combine both — and live in such a place? That dream — a home that enriches your spirit in your daily life — is now becoming a reality. 

For the past 31 years, Century Properties Group (CPG) has been developing innovative projects and bringing in concepts not seen in the local real estate industry before, often collaborating with global names in architecture and design such as Ground Zero architect Daniel Libeskind, Philippe Starck and I.M. Pei.

Projects in CPG’s portfolio include Gramercy Residences, one of the tallest buildings in the Philippines; Azure Urban Resort Residences, which features the country’s first man-made beach and beach club designed by Paris Hilton — right in the middle of a bustling city; Acqua Livingstone, whose interiors were designed by Missoni Home; Acqua Iguazu yoo inspired by Starck; The Milano Residences with interiors designed by Versace Home; Trump Tower at Century City; Century Spire, designed by Daniel Libeskind and interior designed by Armani/Casa; Centuria Medical Makati; and Century City Mall.

CPG under its subsidiary Century Limitless Corporation recently launched a new project that makes art — both natural and manmade — as its centerpiece. Called Batulao Artscapes, the development is located in Barangay Kaylaway, Batulao,  Batangas featuring designer homes by Revolution Precrafted, the company founded and headed by its chief executive officer, the design and real estate developer Robbie Antonio.

Revolution Precrafted is the only multi-branded housing company in the world. Revolution is a collection of limited-edition, pre-crafted properties with products ranging from stunning homes, designer museums, unique popup concepts, and cutting-edge hotels. All of these products are created by over 60 of the world’s preeminent architects, artists, and designers through exclusive partnerships with Revolution such as Zaha Hadid, Marcel Wanders, David Salle and Tom Dixon, Philip Johnson & Alan Ritchie. The prefab concept simplifies the process and addresses pain points in traditional real estate development by offering speed, quality, cost efficiency, and accessibility thereby drastically reducing production time. With invaluable innovation and superlative style, Revolution combines state-of-the-art technology, celebrity design philosophies, and the highest quality controls at competitive prices.

Revolution Precrafted’s goal is to democratize great design and remove geographical borders to make it available to all, which fits perfectly with Century Properties’ philosophy, that “passion lies at the very core of everything.”

 “Over the two years of Revolution’s presence in the market, we’ve already secured 17 development sites, and will be supplying thousands of homes. We also plan to expand to 18 other countries and in order to do that, we’re looking to partner-joint venture with different land developers throughout the Philippines and beyond to create game-changing concepts to have Revolution’s touch,” Revolution Precrafted said.

In my previous interviews with Century Properties chairman and Robbie’s father, Ambassador Joey Antonio, he said, “We want to put up iconic buildings to show the world what the Philippines is all about. This is Century Properties’ contribution to the landscape and to the skyline, and by doing this we hope to help the country become a world city. You’re buying real estate almost as a permanent investment. It’s not something you dispose of, it’s something you keep, and there is a lot of pride in owning a property that is beautiful.”

One such contribution to the country’s new design landscape is the P21-billion project Batulao Artscapes. For starters, Revolution calls its architects and designers “revolutionaries” — a group of people and firms that have consistently produced designs that are beautiful, fascinating and thought-provoking.

The Filipino designers brought in by Revolution Precrafted whose creations will be featured in Batulao Artscapes are Eduardo Calma, Kenneth Cobonpue, and Budji+Royal Architecture + Design. The international designers are Marmol Radziner & Kravitz Design, David Salle & AA Studio, Marcel Wanders, Philip Johnson Alan Ritchie Architects, Elizabeth de Portzamparc, AFGH for Wallpaper*, Studio Libeskind Design and Daphne Guinness.

CPG describes the project as being “informed by design, shaped by the arts and grounded in natural beauty, Batulao Artscapes is a design-driven residential community that combines art and adventure set in the spectacle of nature.” 

Batulao Artscapes, whose first phase is going to be completed in two years, is divided into several communities. The Cluster Village features homes called Polygonal Successions by Ed Calma; the Commune Village features the Hedera Home by Kenneth Cobonpue; the Collection Village features Tranche and Facet Homes by Budji+Royal.

The Curated Village has Revolution Precrafted’s Daphne Skin Home by Daphne Guinness, Billboard Home by David Salle + AA Studio Eden, Marcel Wanders’ Instrumental Home, Marmol Radziner for Architecture/Interiors by Kravitz Design; Modular Glass Home by Philip Johnson/Alan Ritchie Architects, Butterfly Home by Elizabeth de Portzamparc; We Home by AFGH for Wallpaper, and Adaptation II by Studio Libeskind Design. These structures will be built using a combination of conventional construction methods and prefabrication, and will offer different sizes and specifications to meet individual tastes and preferences. 

Each village will have their exclusive amenities. Among the public amenities are the Flavor Park, Sports Park, Artventure Park with Revolution Museums, Art Park, and a Lake with Floating Chapel. Exclusive to residents are the Manmade Beach with Clubhouse. 

Batulao looks at its future residents being individuals and families who want a second home outside the city, one where they could retreat but not too far from Manila. The property is only an hour and a half from Makati and can be accessed via Daang Hari, Startoll, SLEX and Cavitex. A future infrastructure project that’s expected to start in 2019 — the Cavite-Tagaytay-Batangas Expressway — will cut down the travel time to Tagaytay City to less than an hour.

Batulao is also intended for active retirees: foreign nationals or former Filipino citizens ages 35 years old and above. As an additional benefit, residents will be assisted in their application for a Special Resident Retiree’s Visa (SRRV) in cooperation with the Philippine Retirement Authority (PRA).

Batulao provides spaces based on what characterize individuals and their needs: active, meditative, festive and creative. Future residents will find that art and various sports options make for a better and healthier lifestyle. The “artventure” that is Batulao occupies a good portion of 142 hectares of land on the foothills of Mt. Batulao, immediately giving residents that much-needed breathing space and a sense of well-being that only nature can provide.

There are sports and art parks, as well as museums designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architects Christian de Portzamparc for the Revolution Museum of Design and Architecture, Jean Nouvel Design for the Revolution Museum of Visual Arts, Philip Johnson Alan Ritchie Architects for the Revolution Museum of Art and Technology, and Tange Associates for the Revolution Museum of Performing Arts.

Like Ambassador Antonio told me before, “Developing beautiful properties is our DNA. We produce this because it will outlive all of us.”

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Visit http://www.batulaoartscapes.com.

Visit the author’s travel blog at www.findingmyway.net. Follow her on Instagram and Twitter @iamtanyalara.