Thought Bubble INTRODUCING 5 DESIGNERS FROM THAILAND, VIETNAM, SINGAPORE AND CHINA FROM DISCOVERED PROJECT ORGANIZED BY AHEC AND WALLPAPER* MAGAZINE AND THEIR FURNITURE DESIGNS SHOWCASE ‘MADE IN ISOLATION’ AT THE DESIGN MUSEUM, LONDON THAT REFLECT THEIR UNIQUE PERSONALITIES AND CULTURAL BACKGROUNDS
TEXT: RATCHADAPORN HEMJINDA
PHOTO COURTESY OF AHEC
(For Thai, press here)
‘Discovered’ is a project that searches for emerging young design talents from around the world to utilize their creative ability through the use of three different types of environmentally friendly woods’, namely red oak, maple and cherry. This collaboration between AHEC and Wallpaper* welcomes 16 designers from 16 countries in Europe, Africa, Asia and Australasia, whose developed designs were featured at the recently held showcase, Made in isolation, at Design Museum, London, in September-October of 2021.
Thought Bubble
Thought Bubble
The project comprises of five works by designers from Southeast Asia and Mainland China that are particularly outstanding. Two of which are Thai designers, Kornpetch Chotipatoomwan and Kamonwan Mungatee whose home furniture designs were developed to deliver two different functionalities. Kornpetch’s Thought Bubble is inspired by humans’ desire for travel and social interactions with a design that molds a physical space into a mental realm. Made of red oak, the piece’s coarse texture and swaying feature brings users comfort and to a meditative state through its repeated movements.
Corners Lamp
Corners Lamp
Kamolwan’s Corners Lamp is conceived from the designer’s observation of objects in her surroundings, and the relationships and interactions formed between shapes, lights and shadows. The designer takes inspiration from the physical attributes of stupa, creating a lamp with a shade that casts a downward lighting effect. The configuration consists of a complex grid structure reinforced with wooden pieces and details of indented and carved out corners. Kamolwan has chosen soft maple wood for the silvery reflection it creates when interacting with lights, and American Cherry wood for its ability to absorb colors.
The three remaining works by designers from Vietnam, Singapore and China pick up on stories of cultural identities and heritage, family and social rituals, and materializes them into different furniture designs.
The Roof Stool
The Roof Stool
Trang Nguyen, Vietnamese designer, designs The Roof Stool, which takes inspiration from the architecture of Vietnamese temples and attires. The design is distinctive for its use of dowels and details of tongue and groove joints that become hidden when the stools are stacked. The piece uses cherry, red oak and maple wood with the dowels made of two different types of wood while the remaining type of wood is used for other parts of the stool. The variation brings an interesting combination of colors to the piece.
Winding Stream
Yunhan Wang from Zhuhai, China, realizes ‘Winding Stream’ from the winding stream party, an ancient Chinese drinking game where a small glass containing liquor is released to flow through a stream of water. If the glass stops in front of a person, they are obliged to drink the liquor and come up with a poem. Wang designs a small-scale table with hidden compartments at the legs with a groove on the top where the tray and glasses are placed. The table comes with a groove that drains water into a waste bucket hidden in the main leg. The designer chooses hard maple wood for its light color and spray-paints the piece to prevent untimely deterioration.
Recollect
Recollect
Tan Wei Xiang From Singapore, designs ‘Recollect’ derived from the longing for physical connection lost during isolation. The cabinet, which preserves the love and respect one longs for and cherishes, is inspired by construction sites commonly found in Singapore. Tan simulates the pattern of corrugated galvanized sheets on the cabinet’s exterior surface. Installed inside are curvy shelves and details of polished brass cut in a circular shape, mimicking the setting sun. The hard wood from American forests and hard maple wood’s different thicknesses are able to create unique details of creases while red oak is used for the curved shelves inside of the cabinet.
The works, which range from functional furniture pieces such as a cabinet, tables and chairs, all the way to abstract carved wooden sculptures, are born from design processes that allows designers to freely develop their creative thoughts, alongside their personal and professional experiences that have emerged and materialized during the pandemic. What the works from the Discovered project have manifested showcase how solitude and isolation can become an inspiration for each designer’s personal and creative journey.