Atelier V&A, The New Singapore Design Studio Blending Heritage With Modern Craft
Atelier V&A’s Venetia Gu and Aisha Hillary-Morgan create functional and sculptural furniture.
Samantha Francis 6 Nov 2025
“The name Atelier V&A came to us both without us knowing it,” quips Venetia Gu of the design studio she co-founded with Aisha Hillary-Morgan. “That synchronicity told us we had something special.”
Gu, a Singaporean interior designer (Peridot Interiors), and Hillary-Morgan, an Australian-Dutch interior stylist (Hills & West), met through a supplier in November 2023, who predicted they’d “get on like a house on fire”. They did.
Hillary-Morgan says, “The funny thing is, our lives had run parallel for years. We attended the same sister schools and lived in the same neighbourhoods in Sydney. Venetia even had an apartment above my store in East Village.”
In no time, the women realised they had the same design frustrations: finding bold, beautiful, and well-crafted furniture for their clients. “We always spoke about combining materials, marble and wood, and ceramics and stone,” recalls Gu, whose family owns Interics Décor, a well-known interior design and renovation company in Singapore with over 45 years of experience.
“While sourcing or visiting galleries, we were drawn to the same pieces and began imagining how we could improve the craft,” says Gu.
In their shared design language, rooted in curiosity and a respect for craftsmanship, materials and textures are used to evoke emotion and memories. “We wanted a space where design could be sculptural and functional; where we could experiment with clients and collaborate with artisans,” explains Hillary-Morgan.
And so Atelier V&A was born. Opened in September, its first showroom is a double-height space in a converted factory in Kaki Bukit. This part gallery, brand playground, and creativity lab offers services such as design-led residential, retail, and commercial projects for clients such as Boutiques Fair Singapore and Mosscape at Scotts Square.
In addition to the in-house and curated collections, the partners and their artisans also design bespoke furniture and accessories in collaboration with other designers. These are handcrafted on-site by master woodworkers from Singapore, Malaysia, and China.
In Atelier One, their debut collection, they present eight one-of-a-kind pieces including consoles, chairs, mirrors, stools, coffee tables, and plinths.
“Our creative process often begins with an intuitive spark,” says Hillary-Morgan. “After sketching and prototyping, we often use 3D printing to get the scale right before touching wood or stone. Then we keep refining until the idea becomes tangible.”
Hillary-Morgan’s Prologue Console, for example, was inspired by her search for a small, versatile piece for her apartment. Its pie-segment legs echo Peranakan tile geometry, translating local heritage into clean, contemporary lines.
Their taste for bold, chunky profiles is clearest in the Dialogue Table. Taller than a standard dining table, it invites movement and mingling, while mixed 200mm thick marble slabs give it a commanding presence.
“Marble spheres, an Atelier V&A’s signature, are also scattered along the legs. Playful, tactile, and discreet, these serve as bag rests,” explains Gu.
