The local crafters inspiring sustainability through homeware

Thus began her hunt for an eco-friendly alternative. Joyce’s search led her to Jesmonite, a water-based composite material. Originally intended to be used as a concrete substitute, savvy designers like Joyce are discovering this versatile medium and using it to realise their artistic expression instead. Outside of its usage as a building material, Jesmonite also works on a small-batch production scale: no volatile organic compounds mean no harmful fumes are produced, and there is no need to use a kiln, oven, or any other high-energy machinery to cure the product. 

Broken pieces aren’t wasted, either. The versatility of the product allows for what would typically end up as discarded material be re-moulded and transformed into new, one-of-a-kind, products. Joyce puts it in a more poetic way: “once broken, considered new”.  

Once broken, considered new 

Marbled plates and terrazzo planters are among some of the items that she, along with co-founder Halim Wahab, fashion out of the eco-material, and retails the unique pieces through their craft studio, Chokmah. “Each piece is made responsibly with care of the environment,” adds Joyce. 

More than just retailing creating gorgeous, colourful wares, Chokmah also conducts a series of Jesmonite workshops to help inspire the message of sustainability. “Most consumers only get to see the end-product nowadays,” says Joyce. “They don’t get to really see the entire [crafting] process and what are the waste created in the process.” 

Chokmah’s workshop, thus, provides a hands-on introduction to sustainable crafting. Customers can experience the entire no-waste process; Joyce uses silicon supplies in place of single-use materials, and leftover Jesmonite products are crushed up into terrazzo chips and can be re-used to create new works of art. “The whole idea is really about encouraging the concept of crafting sustainably,” says Halim. 

Education is an important mission for the business, and Chokmah regularly participates in outreach programs to further the message of working with the environment in mind. There are even plans in the pipeline to set up an academy, to further spread the critical message of sustainability. “They don’t really teach this in school,” adds Halim. 

Sustainability might be a trending movement in recent years, but the green approach has yet to find firm footing in the local art scene in Singapore. And this is why Joyce loves what she’s able to do now – to inspire a new generation of crafters and artists that puts the environment on the forefront. “It’s rare for art and sustainability to co-exist together,” she says.