Furniture design is much more than alive and well in Singapore, with a new generation of designers who are passionate about taking the art into the future. Here are the Singapore furniture designers you should know.
Ivan Ho, tizumuka
A former interior designer and furniture design lecturer, Ivan made the switch to furniture design midway through his career. He founded tizumuka, a multidisciplinary design studio, in 2012. The studio focuses on artisanal craftsmanship, where materials play a major role in the studio’s research and idea conception process.
Ivan’s earliest work was a console he designed for the Furniture Design Award in 2001, which garnered a merit award. The Yodessa stool, a clever design consisting of three parts that are secured in place with a plumbing valve knob, won him an Honourable Mention from the Red Dot Award: Design Concept in 2014.
This year, the studio’s 2016 collection made its debut at the International Furniture Fair Singapore. The 37-year-old was one of 20 designers around the world featured in the Design STARS 2016 programme. tizumuka collaborated with furniture manufacturer Scanmark to produce the Mushu collection, consisting of three designs: the Kak stool, Pak+Tar modules and Eesup chair.
Julian Koh, Commune
Julian grew up watching how furniture pieces are made and marketed. His family founded and grew the brand Koda, an export-only furniture manufacturing company. Trained in industrial design in Melbourne, Julian then founded contemporary furniture and accessories store Commune in 2012. Aside from spearheading Koda’s design team, Koh has also been busy with raising Commune’s international presence. The homegrown brand is now available in China, Malaysia, Australia and Indonesia.
The creative director heads the in-house Sensory Design Lab, where collaborations with different designers from around the world take place. Recognising the technologically advanced world of today and the rising popularity of small homes, Commune’s upcoming projects include space-saving and smart furniture designed to engage and enrich the user experience.
Nathan Yong, Nathan Yong Design
As one of Singapore’s veteran furniture designers, Nathan’s list of achievements in the field is a long one. An industrial design graduate from Temasek Polytechnic, he started his career as a buyer where he learnt about the processes in production, craft and marketing. He founded furniture retail store Air Division. The store carried his designs, which were made by Asian craftsmen.
Along the way, he attained a master’s degree in design and won the Red Dot Concept Design Awards for two consecutive years in 2006 and 2007 with his conceptual designs of a mass production coffin and a portable room heater. He was also awarded the President’s Design Award 2008 Designer of the Year – the highest accolade for designers from all creative disciplines in Singapore.
Today, Nathan runs his multidisciplinary design consultancy firm. His work spans industrial design, graphic design, interior design, architectural design, strategic planning in product development, manufacturing process and branding. He is also the co-founder of furniture retail store Grafunkt.
Kok Yih Ming, Kudzu
Founded in 2011, the furniture brand is after the Kudzu plant. Co-founder and creative director Yih Ming’s designs bear a sculptural quality and the works are eclectic. For instance, his first collection, called Densetsu showcased at the Milan Satellite Fair in 2007, is vibrant and playful in its use of shapes, colours and patterns. Kudzu is a brand to watch for its novel and surprising designs.
His latest collection embraces colours but tones down considerably with its military influences. Decked out in army green and leather, the pieces such as the Colt Commander Chair sport tubular frames that give them a mobile, lightweight look. He is currently collaborating with a Japanese retail outlet to produce a series of furniture and products.
Hunn Wai, Lanzavecchia + Wai
Hunn is based in Singapore while his business partner, Francesca Lanzavecchia, works in Italy. The duo met while pursuing the master’s degree programme at the renowned Design Academy Eindhoven in the Netherlands. Hunn had earlier completed his industrial design education at the National University of Singapore.
Since founding the company in 2009, the duo has received international attention, having been featured in Newsweek and won the Young Design Talent of the Year at the Elle Decor International Design Awards in 2014. The studio has also worked with clients such as Mercedes-Benz and helicopter manufacturer AgustaWestland.
The design studio’s works that have hit the market this year include the mouth-blown glassware capsule collection named Glasss for LuisaViaRoma and the PLAYplay furniture collection for homegrown furniture retailer Journey East. In June this year, Lanzavecchia + Wai received the prestigious Red Dot Award: Product Design 2016 for the Transition porcelain stoneware tile system for Italian tile brand Mirage Granito Ceramico.
Pamela Ting and Jessica Wong, Scene Shang
Jessica Wong, a trained architect, and Pamela Ting, a former banker, collaborated to form Scene Shang in 2013. They met while working in Shanghai and bonded over their love for the stories, design and culture they came across in the city. Inspired by Singapore and Shanghai Art Deco, Scene Shang’s clean silhouettes give a modern touch to Asian aesthetic.
Many consider Scene Shang’s pieces as modern heirlooms. The Shang system, a stackable component and storage system, garnered special commendation at the 2014 President’s Design Award and the Golden A’Design Award for Furniture and Homeware Design at the Milan-based A’Design 2015. The duo recently opened their flagship store at Beach Road. Jia Ju, a new collection consisting of a dining table, sideboard, chair and rocking stool, was also released in April this year.
This was adapted from an article originally written by Rossara Jamil in the August 2016 issue of SquareRooms.
