Design Anthology - Asia Pacific Edition
Studio
In Singapore, a secondgeneration woodworking studio is pushing boundaries and elevating the craft
Bespoke furniture producer Roger&Sons opened its showroom and event space in 2019, amid the hardware stores and newfangled eateries of Singapore's Jalan Besar neighbourhood. Morgan Yeo, a secondgeneration craftsman, took the helm of his family's carpentry business in 2014 when his father passed away. ‘As the eldest of his three sons, I've always known that I'd be a part of the business because I want to uphold his legacy,' Yeo says.
Morgan and his younger brothers Lincoln and Ryan have assiduously transformed the enterprise from a stagnant system furniture fabrication business into a spirited studio that creates bespoke interiors and objects. ‘The competition from Malaysian and Chinese manufacturers gave us impetus to veer away from assembling run-of-the-mill office furniture. Now we want to push the boundaries of woodworking by taking on unconventional and technically challenging projects that most local carpenters would reject,' Yeo explains. In Singapore, carpentry work is mostly rudimentary — kitchen cabinets, wardrobes and their ilk — but the Yeo trio restively prototype and experiment with new materials. This is exemplified by the diverse range of projects Roger&Sons has undertaken in the past few years, from outfitting the Singapore outpost of famed New York bar Employees Only to constructing a periodic table display case for a scientist.
The grist for the mill of Yeo's success is a tightly knit team that has stuck with him through the ebbs and flows of this venture. Three stalwarts have been with the company for more than two decades, and there are at least ten younger apprentices who have picked up the trade. This multigenerational workforce not only differentiates Roger&Sons from most local woodworking companies, but ensures that the vanishing trade is passed on to a younger generation of artisans, thereby proving that carpentry can be a viable career in the technocratic city state.
Building on his father's legacy has also spurred Yeo to champion environmental sustainability. ‘Why are we importing wood from Indonesia when we have the supply we need here in Singapore?' he asks as an overture for this conviction. A 2017 report by Singapore's National Parks Board revealed that by 2032, a projected 10,000–13,000 trees could be felled to make space for redevelopment projects. Most of this dislodged timber would be used for mulch or biofuel. As a response, Yeo initiated the Local Tree Project, an initiative to salvage the surfeit and create meaningful, long-lasting pieces from discarded local wood. Taking it one step further, he has also partnered with a handful of organisations, such as Singapore's Urban Redevelopment Authority, to repurpose felled trees into communal furniture for public spaces.
Accoutred with an unyielding and infectious passion for craft, Yeo and his team ultimately seek to establish a singular carpentry style for which Singapore will become renowned, similar to how their Japanese counterparts are esteemed for their joinery and deep affinity with vernacular architecture. ‘We're a young nation, so we're still figuring it out, but I believe we'll get there,' he says.