The Editorial Team

Wendy Chua
co-editor

Wendy is drawn to the workshop and her curiosity for sensorial material exploration is rooted in the childhood memory of observing her mother, a seamstress, at work. From reinterpret-ing wood joinery in the Black Forest table to penning this book, she has brought a focus to dwindling crafts through the lens of design. This imbues meaning to her practice—forest & whale—and her role as a design educator.

Currently based in Singapore and Buenos Aires, Wendy is also known for her work in the design collective Outofstock, which encompasses research, product and spatial design. 

xin xiaochang
CO–editor

An artist working across the disciplines of art, craft and design, Xiaochang has a deep affinity with tactility, haptic qualities and keen craftsmanship, and produces small sculptural works in ceramics and various mixed media, painstakingly by hand. Her works are deeply rooted in the local context, exploring themes that depict uniquely Singaporean idiosyncrasies. 

Xiaochang believes that working with our hands is crucial in an increasingly digital era, so we are connected to our humanity. This is made tangible in her work exhibited in solos and group shows, in Singapore and overseas. 

yuki mitsuyasu
co-editor

Yuki enjoys fabricating her jewellery pieces by hand as this allows her to come up with spontaneous shapes that could only arise from the organic process. This is also rooted in her belief that jewellery should look beautiful from every angle with the narrative woven in the material and its function. 

Trained in Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts, London, Yuki lived and worked in the United Kingdom where she apprenticed and practised as a jewellery designer before returning to Singapore with her eponymous label.

pharaon siraj
book designer

Pharaon Siraj is the founder of design studio Fifth Column. He works across the fields of identity, editorial, packaging and interactive design for commercial and cultural clients. He believes in striking a balance between conceptual rigour and functionality in any project; with the aim of creating lasting, meaningful experiences. A self-professed type geek, he instinctively knows when there’s a new serif in town. 

rebecca toh
photographer

Rebecca Toh is a photographer working across the world. Some of her clients include The New York Times, Facebook, Monocle, etc. Hugely influenced by the ability of a film to tell moving, layered stories, she works to inject emotion, story-telling and a sense of the cinematic into the images she creates for a diverse range of commercial, advertising and editorial clients across multiple industries and cities. Based in Singapore, but always on the road.