Works: Squishy Vase Collection — Bryce Lim

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Milan Design Week,
April 21 - 26,
SaloneSatellite 2026,
Pavilion 7, Booth D15.

Squishy Vase Collection

Vases

2026

Polyurethane (PU) foam is long tied in furniture to mass production and disposability, an envrionmental burdern, concealed beneath upholstery, hardly meant to be seen. The Squishy Vase Collection provokes these perceptions by embracing it the sole material of craft through a series of voluminous, stone-like vessels rendered in deep black, each revealing a white inner lining. Read almost as silhouettes, their monolithic presence and texture suggest solidity and weight, yet they yield under pressure, remaining unexpectedly soft to the touch.

Formed using 3D-printed moulds treated with a solution that disrupts the foam’s surface reaction, it expands to form a mineral-like skin that defines the collection. Linear mould lines trace along the gentle contours of each vessel, recording a dialogue between the material’s natural behaviour and the process that shapes it.

The foam used in the collection is sourced from off-spec industrial discard — raw materials that fall outside manufacturing standards and is typically rejected. The collection invites a reconsideration of PU foam’s aesthetic, value, and permanence when approached through the lens of craft. In doing so, it suggests that materials regardless of their origins or associations can shift in meaning when engaged with care, intention, and time.

The works are not intended for production. Instead, they exist as a curatorial body of work, resisting the cycles of demand that the material is often embedded within.