PREP loves sharing good stories about inspiring people. All of the models on our hair menu are people with a real zest for life and we’re happy to introduce you to them as part of a series of PREP Spotlights.
Renyung Ho
What do you work as?
I work as a connector, and mainly, co-founder of a social business called MATTER.
I call myself a connector because that’s where my passion lies and the common thread of all my activities, whether it has been building a collaborative workspace, online community, or events series.
A little bit about MATTER - its about connecting rural artisans and designers to create travelware, the first edition of which are pants - pants to see the world in! We work with artisan communities in Rajasthan to create handloomed and blockprinted fabric that we then use for our pants, which are versatile, comfortable and stylish - perfect for the modern nomad. We are soft launching end of March so look forward to discovering more on matterprints.com.
What are some of the best parts of your work that you look forward to?
One of the most rewarding times was being in a blockprinting workshop in a small village called Bagru in India, working with a fifth generation printer who was also instrumental in documenting the process for Bagru to obtain the Geographical Indication (GI) for Blockprinting. (GI is what Champagne has for sparkling wine, for example). I had visited other workshops but no one could communicate to me the stories and process behind the printing as well as he did. He told me the stories and names of each print and this fascinated me to no end. We went through the process of natural dying, where minerals and plants are ground down to make fabric dyes. One of the key things I took away was how much variation the final product could have - the final colour and tone of the fabric depends on several factors such as the precise pressure of the blockprinter’s hand each time he repeats a pattern, the weather that day, how much wind, sun and humidity there is, and also the density and purity of the dye he is using. You never really know what you’re going to get until it’s done, and I thought that was a beautiful metaphor for life, and quite an antidote for the kind of digital work we are used to in a city like Singapore. So I guess the part I really love is being in a blockprinting workshop and seeing one of our prints emerge.
What are some interests you have outside of work?
I have a habit of taking a solo trip every year on my birthday and just traveling with my camera to a mountain somewhere and waiting for the sunrise. Its a humbling and inspiring journey. So traveling is a definite huge part of my life that will never go away. On a more active note, I also wakeboard and rock climb, although not as much as I would like to! The only thing that has really stayed with me through the years is photography. Other interests have started and waned depending on the stage of life I’m in. I really want to take up horse riding again, as well as the saxophone. I used to play the trumpet as a kid. If only we had more hours in the day….
What makes you excited about these interests?
I think photography perseveres because it reminds me of the beauty in small things, and unexpected moments. I love photography for the process and mindset it puts me in - there’s a kind of flow I feel when it’s just me behind a camera, and my mind’s eye is entirely focused on the small details in front of me. I am entirely present.
You’d most likely be found getting a blowout at PREP when you need to PREP for…
A wedding, special occasion, night out on the town, or when I just want to give myself a treat.