Gabriel Tan
Product and furniture designer, founder and creative director of Gabriel Tan Studio in Singapore
Natural simplicity is the thread that runs through the pieces designed by Gabriel Tan, whether they’re acoustic panels made from cork for Swedish brand Abstracta or the Aurora carpet for Asplund, which depicts the undulating Northern Lights underfoot. Natural materials also abound in Tan’s workspace in his home office in Serangoon Gardens, a quiet residential enclave in the north-eastern part of Singapore.
Next to his desk is a wall where he lines samples of tactile materials side by side, ranging from cork to charred cedar wood. “I work in the living room of a single-storeyed landed house built in the 1960s,” he says, adding that he prefers working on a desk close to the window. “I have natural light coming in from the side, and that is great for sketching.”
With Tan also helming the creative direction of doorhandle maker Turn, Japanese furniture label Ariake and Portuguese craft brand Origin, he is constantly sketching and likes to keep his drawings taped onto the wall. “This way, I can revisit old ideas easily— sometimes I choose not to continue with the concept for the moment, but it could be the spark for another project in the future. So if I feel that it is an idea worth holding onto, it goes to the wall and not the bin.”