The Virtuoso of Rattan Renaissance

Kenneth Cobonpue

Kenneth Cobonpue is an acknowledged furniture design leader. His works have been acclaimed by international critics. This virtuoso of rattan furniture is multi-awarded and is the head honcho of his own furniture company. Most of all, Cobonpue is a Filipino, and a true-blue Cebuano.

In addition, Hollywood superstar Brad Pitt bought one of his masterpieces, a fortune soon followed up when Warner Brothers asked him to furnish a casino set for the movie, Ocean's Thirteen. Such breakthroughs then got him to the pages of international publication TIME Magazine, where he was called rattan's “first great virtuoso.”

Cobonpue started his venture in the diverse world of designs in 1987, when he studied Industrial Design at Pratt Institute in New York. While completing his degree, he apprenticed for a leather and wood workshop near Florence, Italy. Years after, he studied Furniture Marketing and Production at the Export Akademie Baden-Wurttenberg in Germany under a private state scholarship program, and subsequently worked in Bielefeld and Munich.

After his overseas stint, Cobonpue returned to his homeland invigorated to take lead of Interior Crafts of the Islands, a furniture company established in 1972 by his mother Betty, a designer famous for creating new techniques in working with rattan.

“I joined my mother in Cebu in 1995 and we developed a new aesthetic, combining modern forms and silhouettes with natural materials and innovative weaves,” narrated the 37-year-old designer.

Since then, Cobonpue has never failed to wow both local and international markets with remarkable works of art. His designs were recognized all over the world; five Cobonpue designs were presented the Japan Good Design Award. In 2002, he won a Golden Shell Award, a citation given by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo for embodying the ideals of Asian design. Two years after, he bagged first prize at the Singapore Int'l Design Competition for his Croissant Sofa.

“Each piece that our company produces is an exercise in structure, transparency and craftsmanship. And this is the look for which we are known for today,” Cobonpue said, pointing out that he wants Filipino designs to get known.

Cobonpue, who is with Movement 8, an alliance of Filipino designers who share the same spirit and aesthetic, continues to reveal new work each year in design shows from Paris to Shanghai. He also helped found the Designers Guild of the Philippines.

“I hope my work reminds others of this corner of the world and the beauty found in our people and culture,” Cobonpue said.