SINGAPORE, Feb 24 — What is your favourite kopitiam drink? Would it be Kopi O, Kopi C, Ice Limau or Bandung?

In case you are wondering, you can now “carry” your packet of favourite kopitiam drink as a tote bag with designer Karin Aue’s Kopi Bag Collection. Austrian-born Aue is currently based in Singapore where her inspiration for these unique tote bags came from. The accomplished artist is a Design Director in design consultancy, Chemistry, where local and international creatives work in multidisciplines.

Travelling, studying and working around the globe since she started dabbling in the arts, Aue’s portfolio shows that she is deeply passionate about design.

Prior to living in Singapore, she has been to Tokyo, Berlin, Zurich, London and Rotterdam, honing her skills and creativity at every city.

“The basis of my design expertise is rooted in Europe, and I was classically trained in illustration, typography and graphic design while growing up in Vienna, Austria... later on, I studied in Rotterdam and began to feel the travel bug,” said Aue.

She then did a Masters of Art in Narrative Environments in London where she explored design beyond the craft and practised design as a system of thinking in order to solve problems at a meta-level.

“After working as a creative director for a think tank in Zurich, Switzerland, I left Europe to start work in Tokyo as an associate lecturer at Tama B Art University.

“In Japan I fell in love with the region, and began to incorporate contemporary Asian culture into my own practice.

“Now Iiving in Singapore I have come full-circle, incorporating all the experiences and inspirations collected on the journey here, in an environment that very much reflects the synthesis of the East and the West,” said Aue.

The Kopi Bag collection features various drinks like Bandung and Kopi C.

At Chemistry in Singapore where she has been working for two years now, Aue and her team do projects on graphic design, branding to product, space and interaction design in sectors like healthcare, retail or hospitality. This experience enables Aue to constantly be on her toes for new challenges and diversified job scope where she can apply her creativity.

Aue’s Kopi Bag Collection inspiration came about when she visited Singapore as a tourist. For her it was a strange phenomenon having beverages like coffee in a plastic bag. “This was just one of the many new and — to my European eyes — strange features I discovered in Singapore’s cultural melting pot. Being a coffee lover myself, I am always curious to try out and taste local coffee, but this normally didn’t extend to the coffee container,” she said.

The idea stuck with her even after she moved to Singapore a few years later. And it finally became what it is today: an image of the plastic bag of Kopi O on a canvas bag.

The actual design was only developed last year for an exhibition.

“At Chemistry, we make it a point to regularly engage in non-client work and side projects to allow for creative freedom and keep the energy in the team alive. One of these occasions was last year at an exhibition around the food and food culture in Singapore with the title Makan Matters. For this show I finally brought the long-kept idea to life.”

Aue was shocked but pleased with the super positive reception to her bags. “Even before the opening of the show, people were choping bags and the demand hasn’t stopped since. From the initial Kopi C, the collection has now grown to also include three more beverages — Kopi O, Bandung and Ice Limau.”

Since living in Singapore, Aue developed her illustrations further by sketching real life scenes she observes around her by hand. She draws street scenes, people in cafes and reworks them digitally onto the computer. The versatile Aue also loves to mix analogue and digital methods of art.

“I enjoy anything that provokes me, pokes at a new perspective and viewpoint no matter if in a fun and humorous or at times uncomfortable way. Art for me has to be engaging and at best interactive to be relevant and enjoyable,” said Aue.

The talented Karin Aue is involved with various projects that are design-based.

Besides Chemistry, she is also a founding member of graphicbirdwatching.com, a platform for women in graphic design. “Our aim is to develop the field of graphic design for diversity by offering a forum for showcasing the work of female designers, allow for discovery, growth and experimentation.”

To date, they have featured over 1,000 female designers and their work from across the whole globe. The editorial team is an international group of female design practitioners who all care deeply about improving and fostering the much needed diversity in design, in the West and Asia.

Aue wears many hats including the Head of Communication at Aiducation International (www.aiducation.org) for the past five years. It is a non-profit organisation, dedicated to give young people access to education.

“In my opinion, design is really at its best when you can help and support change in the world. Design on its own won’t save the world or generate world peace, but supporting causes and organisations that do in conceptualizing and communicating their message and interaction design can have a massive impact in making lasting change possible,” said Aue.

Aue can’t really recall exactly when she fell in love with art or creating things but as a child she was curious and excited about the world. She was fortunate to have a family who exposed her to art and design at a young age, bringing her to museums, libraries and walks through the city and nature.

As she grew older, her interest and fascination became more apparent but she only realised later that art and design can be the focus of her life not only as a passion but also a career.

“Staying open minded, curious and fascinated by the world around me is what keeps me going, what makes me love my job and constantly seek new forms of creative expression.”

Aue is currently working on a children’s book on animals which was inspired by her partner and collaborator Jeffrey Koh as well as an illustration series on Little India. Both projects will be showcased in an upcoming solo event in April at Artistry (www.artistryspace.com), a gallery cafe in Singapore.

As for the Kopi Bag Collection, Aue is open to ideas.

“I don’t have any concrete plans yet, but I would love to add a few more drinks to the collection. They do have to be very distinct though — I tried Milo, but the colour is too similar to Kopi C. But if you or your readers have any suggestions, please do let me know.”

Get your own Kopi Bag Collection tote bag at:

Malaysia

Snackfood (www.ilovesnackfood.com)

17A, Jalan Telawi 3, Bangsar Baru,

59100 Kuala Lumpur

Opening hours:12pm to 7pm (Closed on Mondays)

Singapore

Artistry (www.artistryspace.com)

Books Actually (www.booksactually.com)

Egg3 (www.eggthree.com/furniture)