We meet Maison & Objet Asia’s Rising Talents and tell you why they are on their way to become the region’s next big furniture and product designers.
LAB DE STU
A collective of three young designers from Melbourne, Australia, LAB DE STU’s series of minimalist furniture takes inspiration from functional Scandinavian aesthetics and meshes them with playful elements. Take the TBC1 chair, for instance. Inspired by Marcel Breuer’s Wassily Chair, the piece combines a simple tube frame with handcrafted leather back and seat.
The three members, Adam Lynch, Dale Hardiman and Andre Hnatojko, each run their own individual practices that run the gamut from art curation to lighting design. Although working on various projects with varying ideas, the three designers’ works are represented as one through LAB DE STU, a method of support and exposure that lets them reach a wider audience with their ideas and collaborations.
Chihiro Tanaka
Calling himself a “light couturier”, Chihiro’s lamps transcend functionality to be actual works of art. The sculptural quality of his works is thanks to the Kanagawa-born designer’s training in fashion. As such, his ethereal lamps often feature folding and drapery that are not commonly seen in lighting design.
Ease
Taking a traditional craft and spinning it into new forms is what Bangkok-based design studio ease all about. Started in 2014, the studio builds on a family embroidery business to create unexpected works of textile and designs. With pieces that include embroidered fabric art and wall hangings, ease aims to combine industrial embroidery, art and craftsmanship to create new forms through experimental design.
KIMU
Based in Finland and Taiwan, friends and founders of design studio KIMU, Kelly, Ketty and Alex, bring their exposure to the east and west to their creative designs. Their collection of furniture and home decor are all about bridging conflicting elements so that the pieces leave plenty of room for the user’s imagination and interpretation. This is evident in their geometric lamps that combine paper lampshades with linear forms.
Stanley Ruiz
Principal and creative director of Estudio Ruiz Design Consultancy, Stanley Ruiz is a Filipino industrial designer whose creations combine utility and poetry. Creating pieces that range from chairs and cabinets to everyday objects like clocks and drinkware, Stanley is a multifaceted designer who likes to work with materials such as wood, metal, rattan and leather, producing pieces that express his varied influences from traditional Asian arts and crafts to modern shapes.
