Eye Candy: We Chat with Designer Tina Fung

PUBLISHED October 30th, 2016 11:45 am | UPDATED July 22nd, 2024 02:45 pm

We’re sure you’ve been to events and thought about – at least at the back of your head – who does the art installations at these shindigs. Well, if you frequent Zouk enough, you would have noticed the set productions created by Tina Fung and her team of handymen.

Having graduated from Chelsea College of Art & Design and University of the Arts in London, Tina has collected working experience in Copenhagen, London, and Singapore over the last decade. Specialising in creating unique experiences for users in build environment, she produces everything from small scale props to large scale installations in set and props design. Apart from set/prop design and interior design, she’s also an art scout for Burger Collection in Hong Kong.

In this edition of Eye Candy, Tina was able to squeeze in a short interview with us (despite Halloween set-up madness) to talk about her passion.

Hi Tina! Tell us more about yourself?

I was born and raised in Denmark and lived in London for over a decade but my ethnic roots are from Hong Kong and the Philippines (never lived there though). So I guess I’m considered a ‘third culture kid’.

We heard you started your career in interior design.

Since graduating from university, I started working in London for a multidisciplinary design studio, Conran & Partners. Over there, I worked on interiors projects in retail, residential, hotels & resorts and restaurants. It was where I learned how to connect people with spaces and at the same time learned how to evoke a welcoming sense of place where communities can thrive. My career took a shift during the recession and I ended up having to leave this trade since people were not spending in this sector.

Following this, I started working on commercial interiors for another studio whose approach was to design places with an emphasis in the commercial sector. Here, I got to work with a strategic team with data I would use to design spaces for clients like Google, Rolls Royce and countless of financial institutions. Fast forward 10 years later, I was randomly headhunted whilst in London for a hospitality interiors role in Singapore.

What got you into set design?

I always wanted to study fine art, but my family wasn’t too keen since they didn’t see it as a legit career, which is why I ended up going into interior design. Don’t get me wrong, I liked it, but I didn’t burn for it. It was after my trip to Burning Man where I realised that I wanted to create art. I didn’t know how, what or where, there was just a need after being surrounded by all these beautiful art.

When I returned, I quit my job and stumbled across a set design role at Zouk Singapore (to be honest I had no idea what that job entailed back then). Well, it turned out it was a role to create art – prop and set installations. Together with my experience from interior design, I was able to work with objects in spaces which I believe, I’ve found something I am truly passionate about!

Where do you draw your inspiration for your set designs?

I draw my inspiration from everywhere really. From travelling, to visual books, to watching movies, to exploring my surrounding environments. A lot of stuff online is something which a lot of people look at and as a consequence ends up looking the same in terms of output for everyone.  I like to design organically as I never have a fixed idea of what the end product will be.

We heard you’re involved in the set production for Charlie Lim’s upcoming music video?

Yes, I recently designed the set for his upcoming music video, ‘Conspiracy’. I got the chance to work with a team of very talented artists, photographers, costume makers you name it. It involves aliens on a moon and I’m really excited for it to be released.

You’ve worked on countless of set productions – which was your favourite?

That’s a tough one! Probably the ‘breathable gin chamber’ that I created for Zouk and also for the Leo burnett/Spikes Asia party. As guests step inside, you are immersed in a breathable cloud of alcholohic vapour. Basically you are drinking this vapour through your skin and eyeballs!  I designed it so that people could experience alcohol in a different way.

Any shouts?

I was recently invited to participate in an exhibition with 5 local artists and 50 design studios to explore the limitless possibilities of paper, The K+ Colorplan exhibition.  The brief was to create an installation using paper for UK based Colorplan Papers together with fellow artists working in various design disciplines – architects, an illustrator, a painter etc. It will be up until the 20 November 2016. Swing by!

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If you’re interested in any collaborations with Tina Fung, contact her here:
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