Organic matter: this month’s Filipino furniture picks

Beyond designing furniture, Jorge Yulo has orchestrated a dialogue with each new material. Sintesi, the Filipino architect’s sculptural collection, debuted at Maison & Objet 2025 in Paris with two pieces that sit deliberately between furniture and sculpture. The brass and steel are held in productive tension rather than resolved harmony. Yulo describes the work as an exploration of how distinct materials and methods enhance rather than compete with each other, contrast becoming the very mechanism through which genuine harmony emerges. Since Paris, the collection has expanded to include tables, though the Sintesi collection remains deliberately unlaunched, rewarding those with the most sustained attention.

This eye-catching Ebb Tray translates the rhythm of receding tides into a sculptural serving surface with continuous flowing bands. The layered geometry introduces depth through repetition, rather than ornament. As light travels across each curve, subtle variations in its blue finish emphasise the changing profile of the surface, giving the tray a dynamic quality despite its restrained composition. The continuous ribbons appear to flow beyond the edges of the object, suggesting movement without defining a beginning or end.

All at once, Uzel Alconera explores the intersection of landscape and function, elevating the motion of water into a precise architectural gesture that celebrates rhythm, repetition, and material expression.

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Standing in the centre of the room, the 123 Easy Chair is a masterclass in restraint. Distilled into just three parts, Lilianna Manahan’s newest piece challenges how minimal and sculptural seating can become whilst remaining genuinely functional and stable. Altogether, the chair has become proof that simplicity can work in tandem with integrity. The customised metal mesh follows a weaving technique where several threads converge into one, deliberately left expressive so the pattern suggests the evolution of a process rather than resolution. The strands gather into a singular line even as the chair stands complete, lending the piece unexpected warmth despite its industrial material. Here lies evidence that minimalism, done thoughtfully, is a distillation of life experiences, reducing every superfluous element until only the essential, evocative line remains.

Inspired by the organic forms of fungi found in nature, these sculptural lighting pieces are transformed into humble forest dwellers that feel both familiar and unexpected by designer Jasser Aguila. transforms these humble forest dwellers into sculptural lighting pieces that feel both familiar and unexpected. Each Kabu Lamp is made with piña felt fibre, an innovative material made from pineapple leaves. Strips of fibre are layered by hand to create the lamp’s distinctive form and texture. The edges are then carefully burned, producing subtle variations in tone and detail that give each piece its own character. Altogether, this lamp transforms an agricultural byproduct into an object that is both functional and expressive, offering a fresh perspective on contemporary Filipino lighting design.

With a unique blend of aesthetics and functionality, Belgian-based Filipino designer Racso Jugarap’s pieces seem to capture dynamic moments in time. The Echo Vessels translate the artist’s signature ribbon-like sculptural language into objects that settle seamlessly on the dining table. These layered stainless steel bands unfold into open forms that cradle fruit or bread, whilst permitting light and air to pass through freely in line with the Philippines’ tropical climate. The laser-cut brushed steel, available in matte black or warm brass, creates flowing curves that suggest quiet motion held in careful balance.

This standout piece is a sculptural stacking table composed of mixed geometric forms, finished in fossilstone inlay and threaded along a stainless steel rod. Defined by sharper lines and stacked angular elements, the piece creates a totem-like composition that highlights the natural colour and texture variations of the utilised stone. Its modular design allows the user to rearrange the components, inviting a sense of play and personal control over the final form. Sculptural yet functional, the design balances vertical form with a timeless presence.

Originally designed in 2024, Edward Sibunga’s Forage Nest table explored the value of post-production waste in a woodworking studio by utilising materials like sawdust and offcuts. This recent addition is built from the same habit of shaping wood offcuts into new forms, elevating the physics of mobile sculptures to let small offcuts find their own distinct sense of balance. The revised piece features a solid geometric base and a dynamic top section that depicts a tree branch. Carefully balanced in both proportion and weight, the upper part allows the reclaimed fragments to move, react and organically settle into place.

“QC Stories: The City We Call Home” is a cultural archive and civic publication commissioned by the Quezon City Government and published by Do Good Studio. It presents Quezon City through the people, communities, histories and everyday spaces that shape its identity. Blending essays, photography, original artworks and curated neighbourhood guides, the book explores themes of memory, creativity, and belonging. It embraces the city’s achievements and complexities. As Quezon City gains international recognition as a Unesco Creative City of Film, QC Stories affirms the creative energy, civic spirit and diverse voices that define the city today.

These Mini Bilao Coasters reimagine one of the Philippines’ most familiar household objects through the lens of circular design. Inspired by the traditional bilao, a handwoven round tray long used for winnowing rice, preparing food, and serving beloved Filipino delicacies like kakanin, each piece pays homage to an enduring symbol of hospitality and everyday Filipino life. Created by community artisans using reclaimed and deadstock handwoven textiles, these miniature bilao transform fabric scraps that would otherwise end up as waste into meaningful, functional objects. Every coaster reflects Anthill’s commitment to circularity, proving that even the smallest textile offcuts can be given a beautiful second life while supporting artisan livelihoods and preserving traditional weaving techniques.

In these playing cards, 54 Philippine-endemic birds from multiple bird families are showcased through beautiful illustrations by Vinz Pascua, all paired with Philippine native plants and adorned with Philippine textile motifs across the packaging. Each card includes the bird’s common and scientific names, based on the 2026 HBW BirdLife Checklist, as well as their local names and current DENR and IUCN Red List status, so that Filipinos of all educational backgrounds can explore and appreciate the Philippines’ endemic birds.

The most innovative designs often begin with a question, as did the BC-01 armchair by Bubk Studio. The query was simple: what if furniture didn’t require specialised materials at all? Inspired by Gerrit Rietveld and deconstructivist thinking, this piece embraces “do-it-yourself” accessibility through the use of mahogany 2x2 lumber found at any hardware store.

Shaped with simple power tools rather than industrial machinery and stripped to essential components, the design exposes wood dowel joinery instead of concealing it behind nails. Stainless steel shafting anchors the seat and backrest, its strength permitting thinner diameters that create unexpected visual lightness to make both elements appear to float within the frame. The result is a truly refined object, where rawness is transformed into deliberate elegance.

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