July 2016 Travel Diaries | Kenneth Cobonpue Showroom, Cebu

One of the highlights of my entire visit in Cebu was definitely getting to visit the Kenneth Cobonpue Showroom. A little background on this industrial designer: he made his name in the United States after experiencing countless rejections in the Philippines. He's especially famous for his furniture designs that are very reminiscent of Philippine Vernacular Architecture. On the photo above, I pose with a super special tricycle design mostly made with steel but finished off with a gorgeous woven detail.

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Wouldn't you love to own this Living Room set? Beautifully inspired by the islands. I bet they would go with any home in the Philippines. It looks so light and cool! This is definitely a recurring theme in his designs.

This chair was literally inspired by a flower. I've seen this chair many times when I pass by the Kenneth Cobonpue Showroom at Greenbelt and always wondered how it felt to sit on one. I got to try it here and it's incredibly comfortable! The material feels like suede and it's really soft.

This light fixture inspired by clouds. The shell is made of plant fibers as opposed to most DIY stuff on the internet that uses cotton balls.

Various features of Cobonpue's work all around the world.

One of his best-known concepts is bayanihan. This is a timeless Filipino concept meaning "selfless help" - helping others without expecting anything in return. This is usually done in the past when people moved their huts around and required the help of other people, even complete strangers! This is why there are a lot of human figures reaching for something.

Chairs inspired by noodles.

Cute steel sculpture.

I forgot what these lights represent, but aren't they perfect for almost any room?

This lamp was inspired by the skirt of a classical dancer. I personally think it'd be challenging to clean though. :\

Grass inspired chairs. Cobonpue used a similar concept for the chairs used by the APEC leaders last year.

Seeing through the bayanihan screens.

Banana leaf dining set.

The craziest, perfect patio dining set I've ever seen. This would totally be perfect for a dramatic outdoor setting.

After the quick tour, we were showed a video of Kenneth Cobonpue's life and how he pushes himself and his staff to achieve the impossible and bring his innovative designs to life.

This lamp inspired by fisherman's nets!

Completely something out of an interior design book, don't you agree?

This one was inspired by bridges, and my favorite of the bunch.

Even your baby's bassinet can be made with such style!

This is the same design for the token given to the APEC leaders. So gorgeous to see it up close!

It was such a surreal experience being here and it was even better to have experienced it with other architecture students like me. I could tell the guide was surprised because all of us were totally spazzing out over everything we saw here.

Stay tuned for more travel posts! Up next, Oslob! :D