Aussie-born jewellery and sculpture graduate Marc Newson (b.1963) made his name in Sydney in the Eighties with his stainless-steel Lockheed Lounge chair. The funkily futuristic designer caused a stir when he collaborated with Myla to create a vibrating sex toy. He has designed lighting and furniture for Flos, Capellini, Moroso and Alessi, and won six Good Design Awards from the Chicago Athenaeum. Not a bad effort for a man only in his early forties.
What’s he famous for?
Creating brightly coloured, contemporary designs. Newson’s experience ranges from glassware, bathroom accessories and vehicles (a bicycle, a concept car and the interior of a private jet), to the Lever House Restaurant in Manhattan, the Skybed for Qantas and cookware for Tefal. A jet-setter who has worked in Australia, Tokyo, Paris and the UK, he set up his London studio in 1997 and now has another in Paris.
What should I buy?
A self-declared minimalist who loves working with unusual materials, Newson's Embryo chair for Capellini (£1,390) is made of wetsuit fabric and has the designer's signature hourglass form. His Nimrod chair (£510) looks like a classic, square telephone handset bent in half.
