Rest in peach? Personalised urns help to overcome taboos

---

A new project where people can design their own cremation urns is encouraging important open conversations about the end of life.

 

Most cremation urns in Singapore are plain, functional vessels to hold cremated remains.

 

A new project called HappyUrns hopes to change that by transforming urns into “conversation pieces”, to encourage dialogue and raise awareness about end-of-life matters.

 

The project team aims to take the urn, which is often viewed as a symbol of death, and transform it into a celebration of a person’s life.

 

HappyUrns was commissioned by the Lien Foundation and Ang Chin Moh Foundation, in collaboration with the Design Innovation team from Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD).

 

Working with seven elderly residents of St Joseph’s Home, HappyUrns created personalised urns that reflected who they are and how they want to be remembered.

 

The project kicked off in 2019 with the designers getting to know the residents – trying to understand their individual stories, character, and what they care about.

 

Three of the residents - Mary Tan (extreme left), Celine Yeo (third from left) and Anthony Long (extreme right, in red) - met with design engineers from the SUTD Design Innovation team, ​Mr Tan Wei Hua (in black) and Ms Amanda Swee (second from left), on Sept 10, 2019.

 

The engineers then worked with two main ceramicists from The 8th Floor Creative Space and The Clay People to create urns that would represent each individual and be a cherished reminder for their loved ones when they pass on.

 

Then the ceramicists took over to “throw” the urns. Wheel throwing is the process of shaping and forming clay into usable shapes on the pottery wheel. Here, ceramicist Alvin Tan is throwing one of the resident’s urns on his pottery wheel on Apr 1, 2020.

 

What was meant to be a six-month project was delayed five times due to Covid-19 restrictions.

 

The urns, a combination of the work of both these ceramicists, were eventually completed and handed over to the residents on Dec 6 last year.

 

The urns are also part of a virtual exhibition, Residents’ Urns, on HappyUrn’s website – complete with quirky descriptions that encapsulate how each resident inspired his or her design.

 

The HappyUrns project, which was led by Professor Kristin Lee Wood, the director of Design Innovation at SUTD, was a spin-off from the Lien Foundation’s Happy Coffins project of 2010 that also sought to tackle the subject of mortality.

 

The foundation had also partnered with St Joseph’s Home then, with three residents sharing their pre-departure hopes and wishes with designers who helped create personalised coffins for them.

 

The residents share their urn creations

 

Ms Mary Tan, 90

 

A spritely character and a music teacher in her younger years, Ms Tan’s love of life is something that carries through her interactions with everyone she meets. She is deeply passionate about music, with her favourite pieces being Strauss’ Blue Danube and Chopin’s Nocturne.

 

Ms Tan was a keen sportswoman in her younger days. Her favourite activities were table tennis, swimming, cycling and badminton.

 

Being bed-bound in recent years has not dampened her jovial attitude. When asked what colour she would like for her urn design, she responded: “Would it be possible to have a rainbow?”

 

She ultimately picked a pebble-shaped design with a wavy pattern. With her ailing vision, texture and grooves were made on the surface of the urn so that she could feel the design as well.

 

During their first meeting on Sept 10, 2019, design engineer Amanda Swee (right) spoke to Ms Tan in her ‘good’ ear to discuss the design she would like to co-create.

 

Ms Swee didn’t let Ms Tan’s ailing vision get in the way. During a discussion on Oct 10, 2019, she held Ms Tan’s hands as the 90-year-old gestured to indicate the size and shape of the urn she would like.

 

27 months after the first meeting with the design engineers - no thanks to Covid-19’s strict restrictions on visits to the nursing home - the project concluded with a simple handover ceremony on Dec 6, 2021.

 

Ms Lorraine Teo (left), assistant director of SUTD Design Innovation team, and Sister Geraldine Tan (right), executive director of St Joseph's Home, passed Ms Tan her urn.

 

Madam Celine Yeo, 84

 

A Chinese teacher to primary school children for 30 years when she was younger, love is something that means a lot to Madam Yeo.

 

She found joy in guiding young students, turning them from rebellious youth to responsible young adults. She deeply believes in God’s acceptance of everyone, and in her personal life, Madam Yeo’s love for her three sons is very evident when you speak to her.

 

She chose a design which featured them as three angels holding up her heart. The wings of the angels are hinted at through the use of a different coloured glaze.

 

The chapel in St Joseph's Home is her favourite spot.

 

During a discussion on Oct 10, 2019, Madam Yeo shared a light-hearted moment with the design engineers as she viewed a styrofoam prototype of her heart-shaped urn.

 

An avid artist who spent her time painting in the nursing home, Madam Yeo was very clear about the design and colour she wanted.

 

A year later, a more complete prototype was shown to Madam Yeo.

 

The shape, colour and design of the urn were in line with Madam Yeo’s taste. Each step was discussed extensively and treated personally with the design engineers from SUTD.

 

Unfortunately, Madam Yeo never got to see the completed urn. She died last September.

 

The final creation was done and given to her family. They put her ashes in the urn on Oct 28, 2021 at the columbarium at Church of St Teresa in Kampong Bahru.

 

Father Sam T. John sprinkled holy water on the urn for the final blessings as Madam Yeo’s “three angels” - (from left) Donald, 51, a psychologist, Lawrence, 53, an art conservator, and Stephen, 52, an educator - looked on.

 

Ms Theresa Wan, 87

 

Witty, sharp, and funny even in her senior years, Ms Wan spent 50 years as a bible studies teacher. She moved into the Queen of Peace Church from the age of 25, and lived there for the next 60 years.

 

Her favourite colour is a pale shade of jade. She enjoys doing crafts in her free time, and you can find her Chinese ink-inspired paintings around the home.

 

She chose an immortal peach as the inspiration for her urn because the peach is considered a blessed fruit in China, a symbol of longevity and immortality.

 

Ms Wan expressed her approval upon seeing the prototype of her urn by giving design engineer Amanda Swee a salute on Oct 23, 2020.

 

A unique feature of Ms Wan’s urn is a special compartment made for a necklace that was very precious to her.

 

During the design process, Ms Wan would often laughingly comment on designs saying the ideal case would be for there to be more greenery in the design.

 

Ms Nancy Chia, 87

 

Ms Chia has a love of precious objects, from gold to porcelain.

 

You can often find her at the home decked out in some of her newest finds, be it necklaces, bracelets, or shiny gold nail polish. She also loves to show you what her latest colour choice for nail polish is, be it shiny gold or bold red.

 

Meet her in the home, and she would also readily expound on why curry chicken is the best tasting food.

 

Ms Chia was clear that she thought the best shape for an urn is a sphere.

 

Her urn design is a blue and white porcelain inspired sphere, with floral motifs, reflecting her love of nature.

 

Ms Veronica Koh, 71

 

Ms Koh’s love of gardening and the blue sky can be seen melded in her urn’s design - a third of it dedicated to the blue sky, a third to white clouds, and a third to green gardens and flowers.

 

At the home, you can find her tending to a small potted garden she takes great pride and care in. She grows lady’s fingers, pandan, aloe vera and basil.

 

True to her Peranakan heritage, Ms Koh loves cooking and eating Nonya delicacies such as buah keluak and babi pongteh.

 

Mr Anthony Long, 59

 

A former kopitiam “barista”, Mr Long loves fishing, bowling, listening to music, working out and keeping fit.

 

What struck him for an urn design though, were bright colours and symbols. He didn’t want it to be dark, he said.

 

His urn features a star with vibrant orange and blue stripes.

 

Mr Long spends his time listening to music on YouTube, with his favourite genre being Mandorock tunes from artistes like Chinese rocker Wang Feng.

 

Mr Philip Lauchengco, 69

 

“I want a tall pyramid so that my ashes can fit.”

 

From the get-go, the former security officer knew he wanted something different.

 

Always having had a fascination with pyramids, and the sea, Mr Lauchengco’s initial urn designs centred around integrating the pyramid and sea motifs. Eventually though, a plain pyramid design was chosen.

 

Care was taken to include detailing such as the bricks.

 

Mr Lauchengco’s urn is the only urn out of all seven designs meant for sea burial. Likewise, it is the only one made of unfired clay so that it can dissolve once released into the sea.

 

Mr Lauchengco often reminiscences about the old shorelines of Singapore before land was reclaimed at Beach Road. He has fond memories of the beach, where he spent much time swimming, as well as near-death encounters he’s had while out at sea that left deep impressions on him for life.

 

Apart from his thirty five years as a security officer, he worked in hotels doing room service, where he enjoyed engaging with hotel guests. Mr Lauchengco also worked as a boatman, driving tourists around Singapore.

 

He has three daughters living abroad and ten grandchildren.

 

Design competition launched

 

The urn has long carried the stigma as a symbol of death. Yet the conclusion of a person’s life is more than just an end, it is also about the journey taken till the final point - one that is worth celebrating with joy.

 

As death takes away one’s breath, it also leaves behind a lifetime of memories and a legacy unique to each individual.

 

In the hopes of overcoming the taboo and fears associated with death and talking about end-of-life matters, HappyUrns is launching an international design competition today, called “Reinterpreting The Urn: A Symbol of Celebration”.

 

The competition encourages participants from all walks of life and at any level of design expertise to not only design an urn, but also propose a new way of broaching the topic of death with loved ones.

 

Urn designs should represent what the celebration of life means to each participant and their loved ones, and can reflect aspects of their culture, community and personal experiences.

 

Submissions can be made via the HappyUrns website by May 7.

 

Source: The Straits Times © Singapore Press Holdings Limited. Reproduced with permission.

---

ALL views, content, information and/or materials expressed / presented by any third party apart from Council For Third Age, belong strictly to such third party. Any such third party views, content, information and/or materials provided herein are for convenience and/or general information purposes only. Council For Third Age shall not be responsible nor liable for any injury, loss or damage whatsoever arising directly or indirectly howsoever in connection with or as a result of any person accessing or acting on any such views, content, information and/or materials. Such third party views, content, information and/or materials do not imply and shall not be construed as a representation, warranty, endorsement and/or verification by Council For Third Age in respect of such views, content, information and/or materials.