MAKE LIFE BETTER
Industrial designer Andrew Loh on Singapore’s design scene and his place in it
ANDREW LOH FOUND his way across the sea of people to me as I scrubbed hard at my iPad screen trying to get things to work. He deftly guided me through the step I was stuck at
(and the next three) before moving on with the rest of the participants of his workshop. This mini-design class was part of the month-long celebration of The Big Draw, an international charity, at Apple’s Orchard store. Loh was there as a guest speaker to demonstrate how the iPad complements his design process, and just to give regular visitors a look into the mind of a different sort of genius.
The veteran industrial designer is the go-to person to learn about the development of the design scene in Singapore over the past two decades. After all, he was an integral part of it. Loh entered the design scene in 2001, and started off by working at various industrial design companies like Lawton & Yeo and Creative before starting his own design company, Andrew Loh Designs, in 2015. Along the way, his interactive art and design installations have been featured on various platforms, from Laneway Festival Singapore 2014 to Singapore Design Week 2017. His involvement in the local design community has also catapulted his work internationally to events like Milan Design Week 2016 and the 28th SEA Games. He’s spent four years in Japan as well, with the design team of Japanese sports gear manufacturer Shimano.
In spite of his efforts to expand the local design field, Loh realises that his niche profession still lacks public awareness. “Industrial design is one of those disciplines that not many people are familiar with,” he observes. “But over the years, Singaporeans are becoming more well-travelled and getting more exposure to the international scene, so we’ve seen how good design can change the way we live. The lines among different design disciplines is blurring as a result, which is exciting.”
Loh currently lectures at Temasek Polytechnic, and in true Singaporean fashion, tempered this optimism with a warning. “Singapore is a small country surrounded by giants. We once thought that the region had not caught up with us, but they have, and they are ready to give us a run for it. We need to buck up.” With the establishment of the Singapore Good Design Mark (SG Mark) and conferences and events by the DesignSingapore Council, our policymakers seem to second that notion. Loh believes that recent progress should be accredited to these government-led programmes, and marks a vast improvement from a time when design was merely associated with a product’s cosmetics.
One would assume that all these initiatives have raised interest in this industry, and it has:
a 2018 study by the Department of Statistics Singapore noted a surge in the number of new design-related firms. Unfortunately, Loh has also noticed a reversal ‒ many of his peers are being purged from this field on the perceived basis that it is no longer relevant.
Loh discusses what he describes as a “disruptive and unstable” future for the field, but opined that industrial designers like himself are wired to survive everything. “Unrestricted, cross-disciplinary briefs have forced me to evolve, develop and do different things ‒ in short, to adapt.”
It is no wonder that he rejects the lazy ideal of the fabled Eureka moment. “It’s misunderstood as a well-guarded secret of how designers conceptualise their ideas,” Loh retorts. To refute the supposed moment of instant revelation, Loh argues that the consistent and timely production of work derives from clarity of vision and readilyavailable images for inspiration.
Perhaps the supposed secret’s been hiding in plain sight. “Once you’ve got something to inspire you, your mind suggests ideas. I’ve found that to be very useful.” Loh has taken and sourced pictures of tessellating patterns, Idea Material Objects (IMOs), natural forms, sculptures and more for reference.
Research aside, Loh’s other source of ideas are his experiences. You will often find him strolling through design museums and shops while on holiday, simply looking out for what interests him. He credits his ability to stay afloat despite the constant evolution of trends to the symbiotic relationship between his work and hobby ‒ in addition to his constant thirst for reinvention. Case in point: he has stockpiled 40,000 photos from his travels on his two-terabyte iCloud account, just for inspiration. Loh has his eyes set on further developing his style with a line of furniture, and getting even more exposure with additional international design shows.
When asked about what is to come for the future of design here, Loh expresses hopefulness. “Today, with a clear voice or something interesting to say, you can get your ideas out there,” he volunteers. “And I have a good feeling that it’s going to keep getting better.” AM
“WE ONCE THOUGHT THAT THE REGION HAD NOT CAUGHT UP WITH US, BUT THEY HAVE, AND THEY ARE READY TO GIVE US A RUN FOR IT”