LEGACY BEYOND ASIA - INDEX_ Vol.4 - Furniture Design Studio

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INDEX_ Vol.4 - Furniture Design Studio

#Index #Furniture #Aureole Design #Nitusharoosh #Robert Kuo #Malaysia #India #China

01/09/2026

INDEX offers a more dimensional view of the design landscape across Asia by introducing design studios and companies that demonstrate clear design philosophies and notable achievements. Spanning graphic design, branding, spatial design, product, digital, and motion, INDEX focuses on emerging practices and looks beyond portfolios to examine how they work, where their ideas come from, and what they stand for. Rather than cataloguing projects, INDEX documents the design language and attitudes shaped by local identity, industry, and cultural environments across Asia.

“Aureole Design, Nitush · Aroosh, and Robert Kuo represent distinct directions in contemporary Asian furniture design that extend beyond utility to embrace form, material exploration, and cultural resonance. In Malaysia, Aureole Design’s Tan Wei Ming brings a graphic and geometric sensibility to furniture and lighting, translating two-dimensional thinking into balanced three-dimensional forms rooted in cultural context. In India, the self-taught duo Nitush and Aroosh specialize in sculptural stainless steel pieces that evoke metal craftsmanship and organic textures, with work that commands attention through surface and form. In China, Robert Kuo combines traditional decorative arts such as repoussé and Peking glass with Art Deco and Art Nouveau influences to develop a distinct visual language displayed internationally. Together, these studios illustrate how Asian furniture design today acts as a cultural and sculptural medium, bridging craft traditions and contemporary expression.”

Malaysia

Studio: Aureole Design

URL: https://aureoledesign.com

Profile: Tan Wei Ming’s background in typography and graphic design allows her to see furniture first as geometric form. Moving from the two-dimensional into three-dimensional design in 2007, she has focused on lighting and furniture that emerges from configurations of circles and balanced proportions. Working within cultural context, Tan applies a thoughtful philosophy that integrates shape, material, and spatial presence in every piece.

India

Studio: Nitush · Aroosh

URL: https://nitusharoosh.com

Profile: Nitush and Aroosh are a self-taught designer-artist duo with an impressive body of work spanning over a thousand projects. Specializing in sculpted furniture, their expertise in stainless steel draws from the rich lineage of Indian metal craftsmanship. Their pieces often feature crumpled benches and hammered surfaces that give the impression of naturally occurring forms, melding craft intuition with expressive form making.

China

Studio: Robert Kuo

URL: https://www.robertkuo.com

Profile: Under the early guidance of his art-inclined father, Robert Kuo developed a design foundation that became the basis of his distinct visual language. He leans heavily into traditional Chinese decorative techniques such as repoussé and Peking glass, reinterpreting them through Art Deco and Art Nouveau influences. Kuo’s work is shown around the world—from Doha to Sydney—while he maintains a base presence in Los Angeles, positioning furniture as both functional object and cultural artifact.