Fiona Nixon appointed Head of Design at Populous in APAC

Article posted by Coliseum, March 11^th, 2026

Image: Populous

Populous has appointed award winning architect and designer Fiona Nixon as the firm’s Head of Design for the Asia Pacific region.

Populous said this dedicated leadership role is focused on curating and elevating architectural design processes across all Populous’ projects in the region, irrespective of scale.

Nixon has split her career between Australia and Singapore specializing in the planning and design of programmatically intense environments for living, learning, leisure and work.

Her projects include the Lalu Hotel Sun Moon Lake in Taiwan, the Victorian College of the Arts Centre for Ideas and the Australian Wildlife Health Centre, and Changi Airport Group Headquarters in Singapore.

Nixon will work across the entire APAC region and engage with teams globally, working closely with Global Head of Design Christopher Lee.

She will be based in Populous’ Singapore studio where the firm is designing projects that will contribute to the country’s economic and social development such as the 30,000-seat NS Square and 15,000-seat arena that will complement and enhance the iconic Marina Bay Sands integrated resort.

Nixon said, “What excites me about this role is that it’s new and it’s purposeful. I’ve got a very specific task to ensure that we are leading by design and I’m really excited by that challenge to look across APAC and bring inspiration from projects globally.

“This will ensure that our designs prioritize the communities who use them and bring people into the places they love to be.”

Populous is a global architectural and design practice with regional headquarters in Kansas City (US), London (UK) and Brisbane (Australia) specializing in sports facilities, arenas and convention centers as well as in the planning and design of major special events.

Populous’ Managing Director, APAC, Richard Breslin said Nixon would foster Populous’ design strategy, approach and talent, ensuring design is at the forefront of everything the leading architecture firm does.

Breslin said “Fiona brings a cross section of expertise that we are very fortunate to have with more than 35 years of experience across Australia and Asia specializing in the design of experience-driven buildings and interiors,” Richard said.

“We are excited to have Fiona as part of our team sharing her passion for integrating buildings into the fabric of cities and delivering lasting civic, social and economic value.”

Nixon joins an integrated network of design leaders at Populous, setting design standards across all Populous projects and supporting architectural teams through design reviews and educational sessions, as well as promoting equitable design that is accessible to all.

Global Head of Design Christopher Lee said that Populous’ network of regional design leaders would provide insight, innovation and in-depth knowledge of trends across building typologies.

Lee said, “Fiona’s appointment is an essential part of our global design network. We are really excited about the ability of our regional design leaders to implement knowledge and learnings across our teams and help deliver consistent design excellence for our clients,” Christopher said.

“Great design is at the heart of everything we do at Populous. As our projects become more complex, it’s important that we have this dedicated focus on quality and design excellence.”

Nixon is a licensed architect in Singapore, Australia and APEC and a member of the Singapore Institute of Architects.

In 2024, she was awarded a prestigious Life Fellowship of the Australian Institute of Architects in recognition of her contribution to the advancement of the profession through design, construction, advocacy and urban design.

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