The value of contemporary, namely minimal, objects is almost equivalent to that of artefacts. It is not measured monetarily; the value lies in affectional and treasuring attachments that we give to these objects. Much like the attention that Kenny (Yong-Soo) Son has given to his designs, the work of Studiokyss holds a power of formal display.

Launched in 2013 and based in Sydney, the vision of Studiokyss is to ‘add significance and value to everyday environments’. Kenny cleverly does not address his designs as products, but instead he calls them objects. That alone contributes to their usage’s flexibility — standing alone as the interior’s visual complementaries or functioning as daily household products.

The complexity of each object is reduced enough to give users a certain familiarity, yet still foreign enough to raise individual interpretations. For example, the Hexagonal Concrete Desk-top Mirror has all the necessary elements to signify its use; but the form and combination of materials shape the extra value to the design. That point of just enough is what makes Studiokyss’s objects so elegant and beautiful.

I especially adore the composure of Desk-top White Concrete objects — including containers, paperweights, trays and a dip platter. With a clean colour palette, they rest against each other like little parts of a one-piece sculpture. These objects surely evoke feelings and they certainly accomplish Kenny Son’s intention of injecting life into them.