Guess What? Linda Garland

Guess What? Linda Garland

"What a wonderful award," exclaimed interior designer and bamboo lover Linda Garland upon hearing that she will receive a design award from Architecture Digest, a well-known architectural and design magazine.

"I'm very glad that such prestigious award goes to Indonesia. It will encourage other local designers to follow the path and at the same time it will promote Indonesia worldwide," said Irish born Garland who married a Madurese designer.

Garland said the award is given to people who have made achievements in design every ten years.

Garland has lived in Indonesia for the past 20 years. Here, she established her reputation as a designer of bamboo furniture and the founder of a bamboo village in Ubud, Bali. She is also chairs a foundation for the development and preservation of bamboo.

Garland encourages Indonesian hotel and office managers to utilize bamboo, an environmentally-friendly building material, inside their buildings.

"I always insist on using bamboo or other local material in my projects. I happened to turn down a proposal for a big-budget renovation project in a five-star hotel because the management has refused to use bamboo for interior devices and ornaments.

"We should actually be proud of using local material rather than foreign-made items," Garland asserted. (raw)