Top 35 Legendary Furniture and Industrial Designers

DESIGN is the creation of a plan or convention for the construction of an object or a system (as in architectural blueprints, engineering drawings, business processes, circuit diagrams and sewing patterns). Design has different connotations in different fields (see design disciplines below). In some cases the direct construction of an object (as in pottery, engineering, management, cowboy coding and graphic design) is also considered to be design.

Furniture & Industrial Designer News, Reviews & Resource

• 10 Best Things We Saw at Salone del Mobile 2024 - "From an exhibition in a 1940s-era Modernist house to a blood-red sofa, the highlights of Milan's annual design fair."
• 10 DESIGN PRINCIPLES (commandments) - by Dieter Rams.
• A bunker for Bauhaus: design school comes home to Weimar - "The Bauhaus was born in Weimar, but was forced to flee the conservative city. Now it’s back with a centenary museum - as Germany’s far right rises again."
• ALL DESIGNERS - "Furniture designers list."
• Apple Ends Consulting Agreement With Jony Ive, Its Former Design Leader - "Three years after promising to work 'long into the future' with the man behind its candy-colored computers, Apple and Mr. Ive are through."
• Armed guards, reparations & the lives of others: Venice Biennale 2024 - review - "There’s less glitz and glamour, more a mood of solemnity and concern at the 60th edition of the Biennale, with revelatory work from Nigeria, Bulgaria and the global south living up to the festival’s provocative subtitle, Foreigners Everywhere..."
• Bauhaus - German art school operational from 1919 to 1933 that combined crafts and the fine arts, and was famous for the approach to design that it publicized and taught.
• Bauhaus at 100: what it means to me by Norman Foster, Margaret Howell and others - "As the influential design school turns 100, architects, designers and other creatives talk about how its ideas have shaped their work."
• Bauhaus in pictures: The architects exiled by Nazis - "Established in 1919, in the wake of World War One, Germany's Bauhaus art school brought a radical new approach to design and aesthetics which would eventually go on to help inform modernist architecture around the world. Now in its centenary year, we look at a selection of some of the buildings shaped by the influential art school."
• COROFLOT - "A World of Creative Work." The largest, most established, most diverse pool of professional creative portfolios in the world. Since going live in 1998, Coroflot has grown to host over 1.4 million images of creative work, from the portfolios of over 150,000 creative professionals and students from nearly every country on earth. Coroflot users are industrial, graphic, fashion, interior, textile and interaction designers; 3D modeling and rendering specialists; architects, illustrators, art directors, design managers, and dozens of other disciplines.
• Danish Culture Canon - consists of 108 works of cultural excellence in eight categories: architecture, visual arts, design and crafts, film, literature, music, performing arts, and children's culture. An initiative of Brian Mikkelsen in 2004, it was developed by a series of committees under the auspices of the Danish Ministry of Culture in 2006–2007 as "a collection and presentation of the greatest, most important works of Denmark's cultural heritage."
• DESIGN - Wikipedia.
• DESIGN LIBRARY AT THE DESIGN MUSEUM - online archive of modern and contemporary design.
• DESIGN MUSEUM - London, U.K.
• DESIGNBOOM - industrial design today: courses, education, competitions, history and contemporary, shop, interviews, snapshots, design-aerobics, the intelligent hand competition.
• ELECTROLUX DESIGN - "The Electrolux design philosophy is called Human Touch. It’s about designing innovative, intuitive and desirable products that are seamlessly a part of our consumers’ daily lives."
• From pencil sharpeners to a $539m lawsuit: how big tech weaponised patents - "In 1842, the US patent office registered 14 designs, including a bathtub and a ‘corpse preserver’. It now handles 35,000 a year. Why did this once sedate world became a corporate arms race?"
• From Rockford, Illinois To Paris, Discover ‘Louis Vuitton: Virgil Abloh’ - "Louis Vuitton: Virgil Abloh is the testament of a relationship that changed the course of fashion history. Virgil Abloh started as Men’s Artistic Director at Louis Vuitton in June 2018. It marked the starting point of the beginning of a luxury new era including inclusivity, diversity and empowerment. The book written by his close collaborator Anders Christian Madsen offers an intimate incursion in the life of a great man born to break boundaries, not only in fashion but also in art, design, architecture and music. 'Virgil was not only a designer of genius, a visionary, he was also a man with a beautiful, sound and great wisdom.' Bernard Arnault."
• Giorgetto Giugiaro - (1938-). Italian automotive designer. He has worked on supercars and popular everyday vehicles. In addition to cars, Giugiaro designed camera bodies for Nikon, Navigation promenade of Porto Santo Stefano, in 1983, the organ of the cathedral of Lausanne (composed of about 7000 pipes) in 2003, and developed a new pasta shape "Marille" He also designed several watch models for Seiko, mainly racing chronographs, as well as office furniture for Okamura Corporation.
• Graphis Inc. - since 1944. International publisher of books on communication design. Based in New York City, Graphis presents and promotes the best submitted work in Design, Advertising, Photography and Art/Illustration. Graphis publishes hardcover Annuals including: Graphis Design Annual, Graphis Advertising Annual, Graphis Photography Annual, Graphis Annual Reports Annual, and Graphis Poster Annual.
• HRH Prince Charles & Sir Jony Ive on designing for a better world - "Founded and led by His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales and Sir Jony Ive the Terra Carta Design Lab celebrates young designers developing high-impact, low-cost solutions to the climate crisis."
• INDEX AWARD - since 2002. "Design to Improve Life is a Danish NPO with global reach. We Inspire, Educate and Engage in designing sustainable solutions to global challenges."
• James Dyson Award - since 2007. International design award that celebrates, encourages and inspires the next generation of design engineers.
• Jony Ive: 8 hits & 8 misses from 20 years at Apple - "Sir Jony Ive is stepping down as head of Apple’s product design after more than 20 years. We look at the key hits and big misses of the world’s largest firm, from the company-revolutionising iMac G3 to the iPhone via the iPod Hi-Fi, the butterfly keyboard and the ill-conceived Magic Mouse 2."
• Jony Ive made the entire tech world care about design - The Verge.
• KISS PRINCIPLE - acronym for: "Keep it simple, Stupid!" The KISS principle states that most systems work best if they are kept simple rather than made complicated; therefore simplicity should be a key goal in design, and that unnecessary complexity should be avoided.
• Less is more: the most iconic nordic designs - "Minimalist, mid-century classics are making a comeback. Clare Dowdy picks the designs keeping the style alive."
• loewe craft prize - since 2016. "Award for excellence in craft and design."
• Lucky Strike Designer Award - "The Lucky Strike Designer Award is the most prestigious design award in Europe, valued at €50,000. Since 1991, the Raymond Loewy Foundation has given it out annually. The Raymond Loewy Foundation was established by the world's second-largest tobacco company, which handed over the foundation to Stilwerk GmbH in 2013."
• Milton Glaser obituary - "Graphic designer and creator of the I ♥ NY logo, whose work was full of colour and wit."
• Nuccio Bertone - (1914-1997). Was an Italian automobile designer and constructor.
• Rams' ten principles to "good design" - German industrial designer and retired academic closely associated with the consumer products company Braun and the functionalist school of industrial design.
• Rebel with a cause: how the founder of Bauhaus changed the world - "From Richard Rogers to Habitat and Ikea, the influence of the Bauhaus school is everywhere. So why is its charismatic founder, Walter Gropius, still so widely misunderstood?"
• Sergio Pininfarina - (1926-2012). Italian automobile designer and Senator for life.
• The Bauhaus Nazis: the collaborators & worse - among the design icons - "They were seen as heroes and martyrs who defied the Nazis. But a new show in Weimar reveals horrifying details about some Bauhauslers, one of whom designed the crematoriums at Auschwitz."
• The MAYA Principle - "Design for the Future, but Balance it with Your Users’ Present."
• Where Apple got its design from - "Dieter Rams: The legendary designer who influenced Apple."
• Where Is Design Going? - The New York Times.
• WSJ Innovation Awards - "Launched in 2011, WSJ. Magazine’s Innovator Awards recognizes groundbreaking talents from a range of disciplines, including fashion, art, entertainment, architecture, design, technology, the performing arts, philanthropy, food, literature and more. As an annual event, it has blossomed into one of the Wall Street Journal’s signature franchises; the combination of special-edition print issue, red-carpet gala and multiple digital extensions reaches WSJ.’s largest global audience every year."
• YANKO DESIGN - since 2002. "Modern Industrial Design News. Web magazine dedicated to introducing the best modern international design, covering from industrial design, concepts, technology, interior design, architecture, exhibition and fashion. It’s about the cutting edge and the classic, the new and the rediscovered. It’s all about the best."
• Yves BÉhar Is The Most Influential Industrial Designer In The World - Forbes.

Legendary Furniture & Industrial Designers

• ALVAR AALTO - (1898-1976). Finnish architect & designer. His work includes architecture, furniture, textiles and glassware, as well as sculptures and paintings, though he never regarded himself as an artist, seeing painting and sculpture as "branches of the tree whose trunk is architecture."
• Achille Castiglioni - (1918-2002). Italian industrial designer. He was often inspired by everyday things and made use of ordinary materials. He preferred to use a minimal amount of materials to create forms with maximal effect.
• ARNE JACOBSEN - (1902-1971). Danish architect & designer. He is remembered for his contribution to architectural Functionalism as well as for the worldwide success he enjoyed with simple but effective chair designs.
• BØRGE MOGENSEN - (1914-1972). One of the most influential designers in shaping Danish Modern design.
• CHARLES & RAY EAMES - Charles Ormond Eames, Jr (1907–1978) & Bernice Alexandra "Ray" (née Kaiser) Eames (1912–1988) were American designers, who worked in and made major contributions to modern architecture and furniture. They also worked in the fields of industrial and graphic design, fine art and film.
• Charlotte Perriand - (1903-1999). "The extension of the art of dwelling is the art of living." French architect and designer. Her work aimed to create functional living spaces in the belief that better design helps in creating a better society.
• DIETER RAMS - German industrial designer & retired academic closely associated with the consumer products company Braun and the functionalist school of industrial design. His unobtrusive approach and belief in "less but better" design generated a timeless quality in his products and have influenced the design of many products, which also secured Rams worldwide recognition and appreciation.
• Edward Wormley - (1907-1995). Was an American designer of modern furniture. During the Depression, Wormley was introduced to the president of Dunbar Furniture Company of Berne, Indiana, who hired him to upgrade their product line. Wormley's inclusion in the Good Design Exhibitions staged by the Museum of Modern Art and the Merchandise Mart between 1950 and 1955 elevated him to a respected place alongside more cutting edge designers like Bertoia, Nelson and Eames. Wormley understood the essential elements of Modernism but never limited himself to one ideology. His furniture represented a convergence of historical design and 20th century innovation that greatly appeals to today's collectors.
• Eero Saarinen - (1910-1961). Finnish American architect & industrial designer noted for his neo-futuristic style. Saarinen is known for designing the Washington Dulles International Airport outside Washington, D.C., the TWA Flight Center in New York City, and the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri.
• Ettore Sottsass - (1917-2007). Italian architect & designer during the 20th century. His body of work included furniture, jewelry, glass, lighting, home objects and office machine design, as well as many buildings and interiors.
• Finn Juhl - (1912-1989). Danish architect, interior & industrial designer, most known for his furniture design. He was one of the leading figures in the creation of "Danish design" in the 1940s and he was the designer who introduced Danish Modern to America.
• Frank Lloyd Wright - (1867-1959). American architect, interior designer, writer & educator.
• George Nelson - (1908-1986). Was an American industrial designer. While lead designer for the Herman Miller furniture company, Nelson and his design studio, George Nelson Associates, designed 20th-century modernist furniture. He is considered a founder of American modernist design.
• Hans J. Wegner - (1914-2007). Cabinet-maker & furniture designer and one of the principals of 'Danish Modern'. He is one of the Danish designers who has achieved world fame.
• Harry Bertoia - (1915-1978). Was an Italian-born American artist, sound art sculptor, and modern furniture designer. In 1950, he was invited to move to Pennsylvania to work with Hans and Florence Knoll. During this period he designed five wire pieces that became known as the Bertoia Collection for Knoll. Among these was the famous diamond chair, a fluid, sculptural form made from a welded lattice work of steel.
• ISAMU NOGUCHI - (1904-1988). Japanese American artist and landscape architect whose artistic career spanned six decades, from the 1920s onward. Known for his sculpture and public works, Noguchi also designed stage sets for various Martha Graham productions, and several mass-produced lamps and furniture pieces, some of which are still manufactured and sold.
• JACOB JENSEN - (1926-2015). Jacob Jensen was among the last great Danish designers belonging to the golden era of the 1950s known as Danish Modern. He was the first Dane to train as an industrial designer and is considered a pioneer in Danish corporate history est known for his work with Bang & Olufsen.
• JASON PHILLIPS DESIGN - "Urban sophistication." American furniture designer.
• Jens Risom - (1916-2016). Was an Danish American furniture designer. An exemplar of Mid-Century modern design, Risom was one of the first designers to introduce Scandinavian design in the United States.
• Jonathan Ive - English designer and the Senior Vice President of Design at Apple Inc. He is the designer of many of Apple's products, including the MacBook Pro, iMac, MacBook Air, iPod, iPod Touch, iPhone, iPad, iPad Mini & iOS 7.
• LE CORBUSIER - (1887-1965). Swiss-French architect, designer, painter, urban planner, writer, and one of the pioneers of what is now called modern architecture. He was born in Switzerland and became a French citizen in 1930. His career spanned five decades, and he designed buildings in Europe, Japan, India, and North and South America.
• LUDWIG MIES VAN DER ROHE - (1886-1969). "Less is more." German-American architect. Mies sought to establish a new architectural style that could represent modern times just as Classical and Gothic did for their own eras. He created a new twentieth-century architectural style, stated with extreme clarity and simplicity. His mature buildings made use of modern materials such as industrial steel and plate glass to define interior spaces. Along with Le Corbusier, Walter Gropius and Frank Lloyd Wright, he is regarded as one of the pioneers of modernist architecture.
• Marc Newson - described as the most influential designer of his generation. He has worked across a wide range of disciplines, creating everything from furniture and household objects to bicycles and cars, private and commercial aircraft, yachts, various architectural commissions, and signature sculptural pieces for clients across the globe.
• Martin Szekely - "Martin Szekely, born in 1956, lives and works in Paris. Szekely enjoys rethinking the concept of each object and he has a special talent for working with imposing industrial constraints. His style is characterized by looking for the simplest expression of the object also embracing its functionality. His talent and personality have been recognized widely, named 'Designer of the Year' in 1987, his creations are exhibited in the permanent collections of the world’s major museums as Centre Georges Pompidou and Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, the Cooper Hewitt Museum in New York, MoMa and the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. He is the father of many iconic objects and 'worked' for many famous brands such as Dom Pérignon, Hermès and JC Decaux."
• Paul Rand - (1914-1996). Was an American art director and graphic designer, best known for his corporate logo designs, including the logos for IBM, UPS, Enron, Morningstar, Inc., Westinghouse, ABC, and NeXT. He was one of the first American commercial artists to embrace and practice the Swiss Style of graphic design.
• PHILIPPE STARCK - French product designer & interior designer. He is equally well-known as an interior designer, a designer of consumer goods, and for his industrial design.
• PIET HEIN - (1905-1996). Danish poet, mathematician & designer of the Super-Elliptic table series.
• POUL KJÆRHOLM - (1929-1980). The Danish furniture designer Poul Kjaerholm ranks with Arne Jacobsen, Poul Henningsen, Verner Panton, and Hans Wegner as one of the leading exponents of the legendary Danish design.
• RAYMOND LOEWY - (1893-1986). Franco–American industrial designer who achieved fame for the magnitude of his design efforts across a variety of industries. Among his designs were the Shell, Exxon, TWA and the former BP logos, the Greyhound Scenicruiser bus, Coca-Cola vending machines, the Lucky Strike package, Coldspot refrigerators, the Studebaker Avanti and Champion, and the Air Force One livery.
• Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec - (born 1971 and 1976) are brothers noted for their design work, which has been featured in publications and museums globally - and spans a wide range from tables and chairs to tableware, rugs, textile walls, office furniture, ceramics, art objects and urban projects.
• SCHULTZE WORKS - "Lots of mostly bright ideas." An innovative design firm employing hi-tech design and visualization techniques to a wide variety of projects.
• TERENCE CONRAD English designer, restaurateur, retailer and writer. He has written over 50 books that broadly reflect his design philosophy, selling over 25 million copies worldwide.
• WALTER GROPIUS - (1883-1969). German architect and founder of the Bauhaus School, who, along with Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Le Corbusier & Frank Lloyd Wright, is widely regarded as one of the pioneering masters of modernist architecture.
• YVES BÉHAR - Swiss designer, entrepreneur, and sustainability advocate.