Certainly Kenneth is not, as Hollywood always likes to put it, an overnight sensation. He studies diligently and observes unceasingly. He works the old-fashioned way. He earns it and how.
With a Business Administration major in Marketing degree from the University of the Philippines in hand, he immediately left for New York, enrolled at the Pratt Institute and graduated with a Bachelor in Industrial Design, summa cum laude.
He later sailed off to Europe for a Basic Woodworking Machine course in Munich, Germany, and likewise earned a two-year Certificate of Completion with Thesis on Furniture Marketing for Europe in Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany. By then, he felt ready to join the workforce and simply could not wait for his very first day.
Understanding and appreciating the ways of old Europe, he was an apprentice in woodworking, cabinet making and upholstery in several German cities. He also served as a designer and craftsman for Centro Azur in Florence, Italy.
He finally returned home to the Philippines and today is vice-president and designer of Interior Crafts of the Islands, Inc., a family-owned business.
"Designing for me is looking at nature with the purity and innocence of a child," Kenneth admits. "There you find perfect visual qualities and relationships that are waiting to be transformed into manmade objects."
Kenneth’s outstanding furniture – they’re objects of art if you ask me – have been published in Time magazine, Case da Abitare, Elle Decor (three editions), Eigenhuis, Metropolis, Maison Francaise, Brigitte, Maison Cote Sud, Interne, The World of Interiors, Washington Post, Miami Herald, Chicago Tribune and other leading newspapers and glossy magazines in several countries.
Two unique labors of love are to be featured in the prestigious International Design Yearbook 2002, which is printed annually in London and New York, and curated by Ross Lovegrove.
Kenneth is currently affiliated with Movement 8, an alliance born from the vision shared by Ely Pinto-Mansor and Budji Layug of 12 award-winning designer-manufacturers representing the Philippines in major exhibitions and shows in foreign countries with "a sophistication so evident, a creativity infinitely acute and total and that indefinable X factor."
Kenneth is director of the Designers Guild of the Philippines and the Cebu Furniture Industries Foundation, Inc.
His numerous citations include five Katha (Manila) and eight Mugma (Cebu) awards, Design Prizes for Exhibitions and Product Design. His latest is the Craftsmanship Award, which he won at the ICFF Fair 2001 at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York.
"I want my work to be a reflection of the human soul," Kenneth declares.
Kenneth is married to Susanne Cobonpue with whom he has two sons – Julian, 3, and Andre, 1 – whose births he actually witnessed. He is fluent in five languages – English, Chinese, German, Italian and Filipino – and is a disciple of the concept "less is more." He prefers sunset over sunrise, mountain over beach, circle over square, and vertical over horizontal. He exercises regularly and enjoys a good healthy massage.
Meet the gifted designer and talented manufacturer of desirable contemporary furniture that is changing the lifestyle of our world as I join him for buko juice at the Cebu City Sports Center
Philippine STAR: What do you remember of your first trip abroad?
I may have been eight years old when I visited Hong Kong and Taiwan with my mom and my youngest sister. What I remember most was seeing so many Chinese at every place we went and everywhere I looked.
What won’t you leave home without?
My hair gel! Should I ever forget to pack it for whatever reason, I’d instantly jump, rush and purchase one.
Describe your present passport photo.
It’s one of those last minute non-production shots – an excellent sample of a totally surprised look.
How do you pass time at airports?
Exclusively at the magazine stand where I scan and read everything I possibly can.
Name your favorite city abroad.
Luxor in Egypt.
What is your favorite place in the Philippines?
My childhood home in Cebu, which was built by an Italian in the 1950s, with its cozy rooms, hardwood floors, Italian shutters, and a fishpond.
What is the first thing you do upon checking in at a hotel?
Unpack completely. Hang all my clothes. Set up my toiletries. Organize everything so it feels like home.
Who is your ideal traveling companion?
My son Julian, because he always asks "why" and makes me see things in new and different ways.
What do you consider a must-do activity whenever you visit a foreign city?
Walk, walk and walk – till I can walk no more. Sit in a sidewalk cafe and watch the world go by.
Let’s talk favorites now. Your favorite airport?
Changi in Singapore.
Favorite hotel and resort?
Any small boutique hotel and all of Aman’s idyllic properties.
Favorite building and landmark?
The Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao and Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia in Barcelona.
Favorite museum? And if you could take home a piece of art, what would it be?
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York. I would love to own anything by Marc Chagall.
What is the best travel advice you can share?
When in Rome, do as the Romans do.
What pasalubong do you take home?
Incredibly funny stories from my travels.
Name an event you would like to participate in.
The Love Parade in Berlin.
What do you like most about traveling?
Coming home refreshed, enriched and inspired from my travels.
What do you dislike most about traveling?
Arriving in a city you have never ever been before and finding out that everything is closed.
If you could have a meal with three persons – dead or alive – who would they be?
The prehistoric man, St. Francis of Assisi, and Mary from the film Something About Mary.
Which sport do you actually enjoy doing?
I enjoy working out and I go for European soccer.
What is your favorite meal and what drink do you often order?
Spaghetti alle Vongole and apple juice.
What are you addicted to?
Sweets! Pastries such as sansrival and the creamy sweet ones.
Name a film you can watch over and over again and a book you strongly recommend.
The film The Age of Innocence and the book The Fountainhead, which has a lot to do with my work.
What do you enjoy most doing on a Sunday?
Listening to music while reading, or driving up to a quiet coastal town and exploring it on foot.
Describe something important on your desk.
In addition to my ever-present tape measure, I have a Tizio lamp designed by Richard Sapper which I bought in Germany.
Describe something important on your nighttable.
The latest copy of Newsweek magazine.
What will we find under your bed?
Magazines and more magazines.
In a disaster, what three things would you save from your home?
Passport, toothbrush and clean underwear.
Let’s have your top three choices. Three geniuses?
Leonardo Da Vinci, Mahatma Gandhi and Thomas Edison.
Three words or statements you always use?
"Please." "Hold on." And "I read somewhere that…"
Three sounds that distract you most?
Metal grinding metal, water dripping, and cold pipes expanding in winter.
Three things you would never do.
Shave off my hair, bungee-jump and live in the country.
What hobby occupies your time?
I read and read a lot. I can’t seem to stop reading.
Let’s fill in the blanks. When you are happy...
I smile.
And when you are sad...
I am quiet.
If you had time...
I would paint and sculpt.
Where in the world.....only in the Philippines.
Where in the world can we afford to smile despite poverty, calamities and Erap? Only in the Philippines.
Name three traits you look for in a friend.
Loyalty, honesty and a sense of humor.
What do you think is the first step toward resolving poverty?
Eradicate corruption.
If you could change one law, what would it be?
I would strengthen our anti-corruption laws.
Name a place you would like to visit?
The Mayan ruins.
Name a country you wish to explore.
China.
If you could reside anywhere, where would you live?
I would choose Amsterdam.