Words Judith Torres
Images PIID and WAF/INSIDE
Since 2014, Filipino architecture firms have been making waves at the prestigious World Architecture Festival, taking home the top prize for some categories or getting high commendations from the jury. Each year has seen more firms shortlisted than the previous year, with 2021 proving to be the most successful yet with 9 projects from 6 firms shortlisted in over 11 categories. It’s a reflection of Filipino architecture gaining more recognition internationally and has encouraged more and more architects to join each year.
But what about interior designers? In contrast to the Philippines’ strong presence at the WAF, the country has barely made a dent in INSIDE, the WAF’s counterpart for interior design. There have only been two Filipino projects shortlisted for INSIDE, and both were done by an architect (Jorge Yulo, for Mecha Uma and La Cabana de Resureccion). It is a global opportunity that has yet to be maximized by the local interior design industry, despite the abundance of talented designers in the country. To address this, Kanto partnered with the Philippine Institute of Interior Designers (PIID) to host online watch parties of the winning entries from last year’s INSIDE, in the hopes of preparing and inspiring interior designers to join the competition. With Kanto having exclusive access to the boards and crits from last year’s competition, professionals and students alike had the opportunity to see how designers defend their work in front of a three-man jury, or simply be exposed to innovative designs from around the world. Guiding the audience throughout the watch parties are pairs of architects and interior designers for each day, with the former being a past WAF finalist to provide a firsthand perspective of the competition.
Day 2: Health & Fitness and Workplace (Small)
On the second day of INSIDE Look, a celebration of World Interiors Week Kanto.com.ph organized for the Philippine Insitute for Interior Design (PIID), Michael Pizarro and Jason Buensalido with moderator Buck Sia encouraged the audience of 300 plus designers to represent the Philippines on the global stage. Pizarro urged them to “step into the world of possibilities.” Buensalido and Sia, both veterans of global competition World Architecture Festival (WAF), offered advice to PIID members to “prepare, prepare, prepare” so they might plant the country’s flag with pride at the World Festival of Interiors’ competition, INSIDE.
Pizarro, principal of Michael Pizarro Interior Design and transformational coach, is a former board director of PIID and the International Federation of Interior Architects/Designers (IFI). Buensalido, design ambassador of Buensalido Architects, shared his observations of WAF 2021, where he was shortlisted in three categories and was highly commended for the CIIT College of Arts and Technology in the Education and Best of Use of Color categories.
Principal of Zubu Design Studio Buck Sia’s experience at WAF goes back a decade, when he mentored students at the University of San Carlos competing at the competition’s student charette in 2013. The USC team won the grand prize against six finalists from Bulgaria, Italy, India, Russia, Singapore, and Vietnam, who were shortlisted out of 50 schools that submitted entries. Sia is also a WAF 2019 finalist, shortlisted for the Cor Jesu Oratory in Cebu, a collaboration with Kenneth Cobonpue. For WAF 2021, Sia did practice crits with Kanto and Buensalido, helping the latter refine his presentations that won him two commendations.
INSIDE is a sister competition of WAF and both are the only global competitions where finalists present their work before a live jury and audience of peers. Below is a condensation of Pizarro, Buensalido, and Sia’s comments on what Filipino designers can learn from the winners and highly commended finalists of INSIDE 2021’s Health & Fitness and Small Office categories. INSIDE and WAF 2022 will be held in Lisbon from November 30 to December 2.
Health & Fitness
Gandel Wing in Malvern, Victoria, Australia by Bates Smart
Winner, INSIDE Health & Fitness category
Condensed entry description: The $120 million building combines state-of-the-art treatment, utilizing salutogenic principles to create spaces in partnership with nature and technology, encouraging healing rather than simply treating disease. The new wing rises seven stories above ground with three levels of basement car parking and a radiotherapy bunker on level B4, providing an additional 110 beds to the hospital. The facility provides treatment for cancer, cardiac, emergency, geriatric care, infectious disease, and maternity services. Bespoke joinery conceals medical services panels and clinical equipment and employs a natural palette of materials that envelops the patient in a warm, comforting ambiance.
On the boards
Buensalido: I see clarity and reduction. The way the boards are laid out is simple and straightforward, which I assume emanates from the clarity of the interior design. It’s minimalistic in material selection and the number of images—few, but powerful. They communicate the core concept of the design well. Given the limited space and time to communicate the concept, one quick tip is to focus only on a few design features. If writing is not your strong suit, tap someone to distill your ideas for you. I used to ask for outside help, although from my observation, many WAF entries use less than 500 words and rely more on the images. Go for simplicity and clarity.
Pizarro: I feel the strong sense of technology incorporated in the design that makes it future-forward. You see the strong integration of materiality, hygiene, and sanitation with comfort and the experience of being in a hotel-like environment. How do we tell our body to get well? We handle our inner condition, telling our minds that we are going to be better. An excellent way to condition our minds is through the environment, such as this space, which shows all the hit marks for this purpose.
Sia: I agree. Keep it simple. That’s something we all must learn—to curate the big idea and convey it through images.
On the crit
Bates Smart’s Mark Ulema described the building as representing the future of healthcare for their client of 40 years. “It’s about the future but also respecting the past, brought together from a materiality point of view through a reinterpretation of the terracotta brick façade.” He then framed the design problem with the quote, “There is no such thing as a neutral space. What we create either causes health or erodes our ability to thrive.”
Buensalido: He’s introducing the idea that this space enables people to heal. So when he reveals the spaces they designed, he discusses how they address that quote. Finishes, terminations, pretty things—all those are important, but the judges, in my observation, look for how design affects lives in a positive way.
Pizarro: Consider materiality in ways that go beyond tactile qualities and contribute to the voice and clarity of the purpose of the design.
Buensalido’s tips
- Discuss the brief. Frame the problem because design is about problem-solving. If you don’t, it may be hard to understand what the design is about.
- The judges go gaga over adaptive reuse. Ulema shared a bit about his past project for the client, which became a jump off point to this project. The first few images show the new building blending quite well with the old building. So, if you have projects like that, discuss how you respected the past, preserved heritage, and, at the same time, moved forward towards the future.
- Go beyond surfaces and textures and focus on humanistic benefits.
Buensalido and Sia noted the strengths in Ulema’s presentation, which demonstrated how the design followed Bates Smart’s salutogenic approach (focus on factors supporting health and wellbeing) instead of only the traditional pathogenic approach (focus on risk and causes of disease).
- Focus on the why. Before diving into the design features, the presenter explained his framework to help the judges understand the project, complex as it was. The presentation was structured by the six design principles Bates Smart adhered to—circulation, safety, adaptability, amenity, patient control, and patient comfort—and why these are important. He then discussed the design features that fulfilled each of the principles.
- Focus on innovation. Healthcare facility design must follow strict standards, but what did Bates Smart do differently, and why?
- Judges are impressed when projects are finished on time and within budget.
Green Massage, Shanghai, China, by Vermilion Zhou Design Group
Highly Recommended, Health and Fitness Category
Condensed entry description: Our purpose is to satisfy the basic function of traditional Chinese medicine through massage and to upgrade the whole experience via the five senses. We do so in a totally contemporary environment, different from thousands of massage stores across China. A gentle and calm “moon space,” poetic and mysterious, is our design concept, inspired by the installation artwork, “Moon Light” by Yang Yong Liang.
Vermilion Zhou’s presenter started by discussing the challenges of the location: a long corridor from the elevator and smells from a restaurant on the same floor. The plus side: good ceiling height. The designers decided to use the lengthy walk to create an audibly and visually quiet space.
Buensalido: Establish your concept, no matter how simple. It’s important that the concept is not arbitrary. There must be a rationale behind it. In this case, the moon—an installation art piece owned by the client that he directed the designers to take inspiration from. The presenter owned the simplicity of the concept and showcased how obsessive they were in reflecting it on interior surfaces and spherical and crescent shapes, and how these created a respite from the hustle and bustle of Shanghai and the mall it’s within.
Pizarro: The poetry starts with the walk from the entrance to the destination. The treatment already started the moment you enter the space. Incorporating the art feeds the soul. And the soul creates, together with the body, a memorable experience that keeps people coming back for more.
Buensalido: Language was not the strength of the presenter. Yet he was asked a very difficult question, “The moon is natural, yet it is also quite alien. How do you see nature?” Be prepared for all kinds of questions—from the pragmatic, such as the project cost they asked (Bates Smart) a while ago, to the existential. Being attuned to yourself and your belief system will help you answer the latter.
Recap by Sia: We’ve seen two great examples of design by reduction rather than aggregation. Instead of adding, we can approach design negatively using voids and reduction. Michael (Pizarro) also mentioned designing metaphorically, but in subliminal, rather than literal ways. For example, Green Massage, while inspired by the moon, did not look like the moon in a literal sense.
Comment from the audience: “Moody, mysterious. Womblike. Certainly a powerful and exotic experience. I think the first judge was communicating some discomfort when asking, ‘Where’s nature in this?’ He was probably feeling claustrophobic and wanting some natural light, especially after the previous entry was all about light air and openness. So it’s an interesting juxtaposition, which highlights the contrast between the highly pragmatic Western approach and the mystical, poetic Eastern one.” – Tina Periquet
Workplace (Small)
Smart Studio, New South Wales, Australia by Smart Studio
Winner, Workplace (Small) category
Condensed entry description: The readapted industrial building houses a purpose-designed studio that celebrates the joy of the architecture process and making. Four 14-meter long freestanding joinery units create a square ‘room’ with five long desks within. Ten large display cases at the end of each workspace bring order and rhythm to the space. Behind the joinery units are a materials library, model workshop, canteen, and reception. Slender steel trusses, cranes, and floors were retained and complemented with industrial elements such as a sculptural steel wire balustrade. A mezzanine with four meeting rooms overlooks the light-filled space while a dramatic caretaker’s apartment on the top floor runs the length of the building. Photos by Romello Pereira
On the presentation
Buensalido: He introduced the problem by saying that the project is in an area populated with traditional industrial brick buildings, and his is a new version of an industrial building—that’s his innovation. As mentioned a while ago, a favorite topic these days is adaptive reuse, which serves sustainability. Also, the judges love process. He shared the process of how he built on the existing structure, and his diagrams supported each of his points. Be intentional in your use of diagrams; orchestrate them in your presentation. Finally, he discussed details and craftsmanship because those details contribute to sustainability and represent the creativity and integration of architecture and interiors that is the studio’s design approach.
Pizarro: I’m strongly picking up from this presentation the creation of a new work culture. The intention of design, again, goes beyond the language of materiality. It’s designed for durability. It’s designed for sustainability and resilience. It’s designed for well-being, creativity, and joy. I like how he highlighted details; the project spoke strongly of bespoke. He created an atmosphere—how creativity will look, smell, feel, and function.
Buensalido: Everything about the project was extraordinary—the lights, finishes, quality of the space. He was true to his personal philosophy of creating architecture from the inside out. I think the reason this project is a cut above the rest is because it highlights the non-tangibles of design: the quality of the space versus the quality of the surfaces; voids versus the solids or planes; emotional experience versus visual experience. It’s about natural light and how it uplifts the space. It’s about a new kind of working and a new kind of living, doing without doors and divisions.
Sia: That was a very insightful project. The way the interior is married to the architecture is something I really, really love. What are the key takeaways about how the project was presented and how the presenter justified his design compared to the previous two?
Buensalido: The key difference is this one is highly personal. It’s so personal the designer actually lives above his office, and he knew everything that went on, from inception all the way through operation. And so the exchange of ideas, the dialogue between the presenter and the judges flowed effortlessly. I observed from the entries last year that whenever there’s a shortlisted house, it is often the architect’s or interior designer’s home. And the reason is they have much more freedom to experiment and innovate, compared to answering someone else’s needs. So if you have a personal project, it may be worth entering. It certainly would be a lot easier to justify it during the competition.
Sia: How can local interior designers compete at a level where jurors (mostly architects) ask questions outside the usual scope of the Filipino interior designer?
Pizarro: This is a clear calling for designers and architects to stand side by side co-creating, collaborating with all respect, with all humility, beyond labels. Design is not the job of one but of multi-disciplines. If we treat each other as allies rather than competitors, if we see the conversation not ending with a dot but a semicolon, the conversations will continue and collaborations will succeed.
New Taipei City Government Comma Lab, Taipei, by JC Architecture
Highly Commended, Workplace (Small) category
Condensed entry description: We broke away from the traditional office design, infusing traditional Taiwan “eat together” culture, which represents the big family relationship of New Taipei City government with its citizens. We bring employees out of cubicles to communicate and cooperate by sharing mutual working spaces. Curving and movable desks are convivial and flexible; sliding magnetic walls allow the space to adapt to different occasions and prevent the one-time-use of large event backdrops. A translucent curtain in the conference area maintains privacy for small group meetings. The design meets the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and accomplishes the client’s goal of enabling change in work culture and image.
Pizarro: I love how this space defied the norms of government office life. I cannot really imagine that that approach applied here in the Philippines as it was created is to answer the specific needs of the government employees in Taipei. The maturity level of the users is key.
Takeaways from Day 2
Pizarro: First and foremost, thank you to Kanto for inviting the Philippine interior design industry to join INSIDE. The way I’m taking this as a designer, and as a transformational coach as well, has a deeper meaning.
One, this is an invitation to be present and sensitive to what’s happening around us. This is a call to stay curious and welcome diversity because diversity makes us human and our curiosity allows us to connect to each other to design empathic spaces.
Two, I want to promote seeing the Self, not only externally, but also internally. This is an invitation to be connected within and reject the voice of cynicism, the voice of fear and the voice of judgment from the equation. We must instead allow our inner voice to be strong, to be authentic.
And lastly, I invite everyone to step into the world of possibilities. Let us go beyond what is taught in school and explore pushing design forward. Stay curious, connect, and step into the future of possibilities.
Buensalido: The first point is preparation. If you plan to enter INSIDE, prepare, prepare, prepare. Know the details of your projects inside out, from start to finish and practice. Practice with people who may not agree with you to discover other points of view so you can further strengthen your entry.
Second, focus. Focus on context, focus on the situation—frame the project well. Your situation is something the judges cannot question. Focus on a single idea or a few strong ideas. Support it/them with drawings, diagrams, process. Say what is unique and innovative in the project. Explain how it affects people and humanity.
Third is pride. It’s high time Philippine designers compete on the world stage, simply because we can. Join. If you don’t want to do it for yourself or your practice, do it for the country. All it takes is one entry to be recognized, and it will open many doors for the country to be recognized. When Buck and I first attended WAF in 2013, all it took was one Vietnamese guy to win and then everyone was talking about Vietnam, and so many shortlisted entries now are from Vietnam. Same story for Philippine architecture. It started with a bunch of students that Buck mentored and then Manny Miñana, the first Filipino architect to be shortlisted, opened the doors for us. One by one, we gathered the courage to join. And now, a few of us have been winning and representing the country. It’s high time our interior designers to carry the Philippine flag on the world stage.
Final Takeaways
Philippine interior design must go beyond aesthetics, furnishing, and decoration. To be globally competitive, the industry must expand education and licensing of the profession to interior architecture.
Sia’s last word: One thing that struck me was when the third presenter said he loves practicing architecture from the inside out. I do see interior designers that way, as architects for the interiors, which is more than what Philippine interior design offers right now. There’s enormous growth opportunity for theoretical and spatial quality in interior design. Many architects are very open to collaboration and dialogue; we don’t consider ourselves superior because of our title and have friends like that in interior design—we would love to dialogue with interior designers. We don’t see ourselves as superior because of our title; when we are shortlisted, we humbly ask each other’s help and critique each other’s work. And it is an excellent learning experience for everyone. That is the environment and the culture that we would love to have in the design community. •
