From the editor

Warmer weather, longer days, fresh tropical fruit, trips to the beach and swimming in the ocean — these are just a few of my favourite things about summer. They’re always welcome markers of the change in season, much like the arrival of the annual summer edition of Design Anthology.

In this issue, one of our favourites to research and put together each year, we’ve scoured the region for stories about culture, creativity, commerce and contemporary living: from a lush space in Ho Chi Minh that looks more like a greenhouse than an office, to a community architecture project in Bali run by a local design collective.  We’re also thrilled to share four stunning homes — in Hong Kong, Singapore, India and Vietnam — that reflect an equally stunning range of personalities. And with the world slowly starting to open up again, metaphorically and physically, we have a renewed sense of excitement around international travel. For the first time in a long while, I got itchy feet reading about the new hotel openings on page 76.

That’s not to mention our coverage of a newly renovated museum and Frieze Art Fair’s Asia debut in Seoul (a city to which I’m very much looking forward to returning), plus we speak to Filipino fashion designer Joseph Bagasáo, who is as concerned with ethics and the environment as he is with aesthetics, and whose last collection was a reflection on the changing seasons.

As always, we hope you enjoy reading this issue as much as we enjoyed producing it.

Stay well.

Inside the issue

Dossier

Openings
A new store opening in Bangkok

Products
New collections and collaborations

Read
Upcoming and new books on design, art, interiors and architecture from the world’s best publishers

A Day in the Life
We spend a day in Bangkok with Charif Lona, founder and design director of multidisciplinary firm Studio Act of Kindness

Museum, Seoul
In renovating parts of South Korea’s National Hangeul Museum, Teo Yang took a minimalist approach to emphasising the history and significance of the storied script

Studio Culture
We go behind the scenes at Yellow Nose Studio, established in Berlin by Taiwanese natives Hsin-Ying Ho and Kai-Ming Tung

Office, Ho Chi Minh City
Designed by MIA, this new office responds to the frantic concrete development of the city by bringing the greenery indoors

Store, Bangkok
At P Palladio, the bold world of illustrator Pomme Chan and her interiors brand Swoon meets family-owned woodcraft business J. Timber

Style

Editor’s Picks
Season-appropriate pieces from brands we love

Profile
From his provincial Philippine roots to spending formative years in New York, serendipity has marked Manila-based Joseph Bagasáo’s colourful career

Wanderlust

Photo Essay, Yangon
Myanmar's storied former capital through the lens of Australian photographer Simon J Nicol

Openings
The best of the new boutique and luxury designer hotels from around the world

Vernissage

Art Fair, Seoul
We find out more about Frieze art fair’s Asia debut in Seoul later this year

Art Scene, Thailand
Thailand’s art scene is in bloom, energised by current events and driven by official and unofficial festivals

Home

Hong Kong
The Good Studio founder Kaye Dong’s coastal family home reflects her design expertise as well as her passion for wellness

Singapore
Park + Associates redesigned this Good Class Bungalow as a multigenerational home that makes room for four families and plenty of nature

Nandgaon
Designed by SPASM Design Architects, this linear home on a coconut grove is a meditation on nature, introspection and the relationship between ancient and modern technology

Ho Chi Minh City
StudioDuo designed this penthouse as a nature-infused respite from the dissonance of city life

Architectonics

Property Restoration, Indonesia
Project Etere breathes life into Bali’s unfinished buildings and offers a model for property development with a social impact

The Flâneur

Secrets in Lamu
A flâneur is an urban explorer — a connoisseur of the street. In our rotating column, guests share their musings, observations and critiques of the urban environment in cities around the world. In this issue, author Sarah Bullen explores the ancient winding streets and mesmerising landscapes of the Kenyan island of Lamu