View source for Max Lamb

{{short description|British furniture designer (born 1980)}}
{{BLP sources|date=November 2016}}
'''Max Lamb''' (born 1980) is a British [[furniture designer]] who combines traditional, often primitive, design methods with digital design.<ref name=NYT_Egan>{{citation |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/16/t-magazine/design/max-lamb-furniture-design.html?_r=0 |title=The Furniture Designer Max Lamb Is at Home with Honest Materials |author=Maura Egan |date=16 March 2016 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] }}</ref> He is known for employing unusual approaches to using natural materials, including pouring [[pewter]] onto sand, and [[volcanic rock]].<ref name=ArchDig_Rachlin />
His studio is based in [[North London]].<ref name="NYT_Egan" />
== Personal life ==
Lamb was born in [[Cornwall]] in 1980.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://www.cmog.org/glasslab/designers/max-lamb|title=Max Lamb {{!}} Corning Museum of Glass|website=www.cmog.org|access-date=2020-04-11}}</ref> He attended [[Amersham & Wycombe College]] for art and design in 2000 where he received several awards. He also received a City and Guilds Photography Certificate in 2000.
He later attended [[Northumbria University]], receiving a degree in three dimensional design in 2003.<ref name=":0" /> In 2006, he received his master's degree in design products from the [[Royal College of Art]].<ref name="ArchDig_Rachlin" /> After graduation, his professor, industrial designer [[Tom Dixon (industrial designer)|Tom Dixon]], hired him as a special projects designer.<ref name="NYT_Egan" />
Lamb started his own design firm in 2007.<ref name=":0" /> He has taught at Industrial Design at [[École cantonale d'art de Lausanne]] in Switzerland since 2008<ref name=":0" /> and at the Royal College of Art.
Lamb is married to [[jewelry designer]] Gemma Holt.<ref name="NYT_Egan" />
==Works==
Lamb works with a diverse range of materials including but not limited to stone, wood, metal, plastic, as well as "Marmoreal", a [[terrazzo]]-like composite material that he himself invented.<ref name="ArchDig_Rachlin">{{citation|author=Rachlin|first=Natalia|title=AD Innovator: Max Lamb|date=8 September 2015|url=http://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/max-lamb-ad-innovators-2015-article|journal=[[Architectural Digest]]|access-date=16 November 2016}}</ref><ref>{{citation |url=https://www.dezeen.com/2014/04/16/marmoreal-max-lamb-camouflaged-furniture-installation-dzek-milan-2014/ |title=Man-made marble by Max Lamb used to create camouflaged furniture installation |author= Alyn Griffiths |date=16 April 2014 |journal=[[Dezeen]] |access-date=16 November 2016}}</ref> He is known for his innovative approach and use of natural materials within his designs. An example of this experimentation is his triangular pewter stool, which he created by digging the form of the stool into the sand and pouring liquid pewter into the sand form. He has also made a pewter stool that combines hexagonal shapes. Another example of natural elements used in his art work is his nano-crystalline copper dishware collection.
Lamb often uses traditional techniques to achieve innovative contemporary solutions. His ''Urushi Series'' is a collection of seating, tables and cabinets finished with Urushi lacquer from [[Wajima, Ishikawa]], Japan. The structure of each piece is obtained by cleaving chestnut with green-woodworking techniques in order to preserve the natural appearance of the wood. Urushi lacquer is then applied following traditional Japanese methods.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Exercises in Seating|last=Lamb|first=Max|publisher=Dent-de-Leone|year=2015|isbn=978-1-907908-24-8|location=UK|pages=59}}</ref>
Lamb's respect for natural materials, specifically wood, is evident in the project 'My Grandfather's Tree by Max Lamb'. Shown for the first time at [[Somerset House]] (London, UK) in 2015, the project was a compilation of 131 logs installed and arranged in the same order the tree was meticulously cut. Originally the work formed a 187 years old Ash tree from Monckton Walk Farm (Yorkshire). As the tree started getting rotten, the designer decided to give it a new history; this resulted in a collection of 'general purpose' logs that respect the tree's life by revealing its growth rings, knots, branches and crotches.<ref>{{Cite book|title=My Grandfather's Tree|last=Lamb|first=Max|publisher=Dent-de-Leone|year=2015|isbn=978-1-907908-28-6|location=UK|pages=4}}</ref>
The designer's extensive practice was epitomized in an exhibition entitled "Exercises in Seating" (2015) where he arranged in a circle 40 uniquely designed chairs that he made using various materials and techniques spanning the course of nearly ten years; the exhibition was held in [[Milan]], Italy, during the [[Milan Design Week]].<ref>{{citation |url=http://www.designboom.com/design/5vie-max-lamb-exercises-in-seating-spazio-sanremo-milan-design-week-04-11-2015/ |title=5vie milano: max lamb's exercises in seating at milan design week |journal=[[designboom]] |date=12 April 2015 }}</ref><ref>{{citation |url=https://www.nowness.com/story/max-lamb-exercises-in-seating |title=Max Lamb: Exercises in Seating |author=Natalia Rachlin |date=16 April 2015 |publisher=[[Nowness]] |access-date=16 November 2016 }}</ref><ref>{{citation |url=http://www.core77.com/posts/36065/Material-Meets-Emotion-An-Interview-with-Max-Lamb-on-Exercises-in-Seating |title=Material Meets Emotion: An Interview with Max Lamb on Exercises in Seating |author=Teshia Treuhaft |publisher=[[Core77]] |access-date=16 November 2016}}</ref>
== Exhibitions ==
2023
*''Mirror Mirror: Reflections on Design at [[Chatsworth House|Chatsworth]]'', United Kingdom<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mirror Mirror: Reflections on Design at Chatsworth |url=https://www.chatsworth.org/news-media/news-blogs-press-releases/mirror-mirror-a-new-exhibition-at-chatsworth-for-2023/ |access-date=2023-03-03 |website=www.chatsworth.org |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Bertoli |first=Rosa |date=2023-03-17 |title=Chatsworth House design exhibition explores contemporary design themes in an eclectic setting |url=https://www.wallpaper.com/design-interiors/chatsworth-house-design-exhibition-2023-mirror-mirror-reflections-on-design |access-date=2023-03-17 |website=wallpaper.com |language=en}}</ref>
2019
* Max Lamb: Special Delivery - Salon 94 Design, New York, USA
2018
* Max Lamb: Exercises in Seating - [[Art Institute of Chicago|The Art Institute of Chicago]], USA
* Re-Considering Canon - [[Design Museum]], London, UK
* Poème Brut - [[Design Museum Gent]], Belgium
2017
* Boulders by Max Lamb - New York, New York, Salo 94 Design
* Solid Textile Board benches by Max Lamb for Really and Kvadrat - [[Salone del Mobile]], Milan, Italy<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.wallpaper.com/design/kvadrat-really-and-max-lamb-set-a-new-benchmark-in-sustainable-design|title=Spring board: Kvadrat, Really and Max Lamb set a new benchmark in sustainable design|last=Bertoli|first=Rosa|date=13 April 2017|website=Wallpaper*}}</ref>
2016
* Villa Noailles Design Parade - Hyères, France
* Albanian Pavilion, [[Venice Biennale of Architecture]] - Venice, Italy
* Book & Branch - My Grandfather's Tree by Max Lamb - Gallery FUMI, London, UK
2015
* My Grandfather's Tree by Max Lamb – Gallery FUMI, [[Somerset House]], London, UK
* Ayan Farah, Max Lamb, & Chris Succo - Almine Rech Gallery, London, UK
* Echo - Exhibition -The Gallery at Plymouth College of Art, Plymouth, UK
* Marmoreal, Design Miami/Basel - Dzek, Basel, Switzerland
* Exercises in Seating - Milan, Italy
2014
* Design is a State of Mind - [[Serpentine Galleries]], London, UK
* Luke Gottelier & Max Lamb - Kate Macgarry, London, UK
* Marmoreal, Milan Design Week - Dzek, Milan, Italy
* 2013
* Modern Makers, [[Chatsworth House]], UK
2012
* Making Ideas: Experiments in Design, GlassLab, [[Corning Museum of Glass]], New York, US
* Mark-ing, [[British Council]], Japan Design Week, Tokyo, Japan
* Rocky Crockery for 1882 Ltd, London Design Festival, London, UK
* RAW CRAFT, Fine Thinking In Contemporary Furniture, touring Exhibition by [[Crafts Council]] - Collect 2012, London, UK
2011
* Studioware - Gallery FUMI, London, UK
* Superba - J.F. Chen, Los Angeles, US
* Designs of the Year – Design Museum, London, UK
* Deptford Design Market Challenge, Studio Raw, London Design Festival, London, UK
* Prototypes & Experiments IV – The Aram Gallery, London, UK
2010
* The New Domestic Landscape - Northern Gallery for Contemporary Art, UK
* Commissioned - Milan Design Week, Milan, Italy
* Objects with a Void - Workshop For Potential Design, London, UK
* The Vermiculated Ashlar, HSBC Private Bank Design Collection Commission & [[London Design Festival]] - [[Victoria and Albert Museum]], London, UK<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/videos/m/max-lamb-inspired-by-the-cast-courts/|title=Video: Max Lamb: Inspired by the Cast Courts|website=www.vam.ac.uk|publisher=Victoria and Albert Museum, Digital Media|language=en-GB|access-date=2017-02-01|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110801183248/http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/videos/m/max-lamb-inspired-by-the-cast-courts/|archive-date=2011-08-01}}</ref>
2009
* Corn Craft, Gallery FUMI, London, UK
* Passionsweg Max Lamb, R. & L. Lobmeyer - Vienna Design Week, Austria
* Tokyo Designers Week - Tokyo, Japan
2008
* Beau Sauvage - Gallery Libby Sellers, London, England
* Max Lamb Solo Show - Johnson Trading Gallery, New York, US
* Materialism - Gallery FUMI, London, UK
* Solids of Revolution - Design Miami/Basel, Basel, Switzerland
2007
* Top Ten - British Council, Milan, Italy
* Max & Hannah Lamb - Godolphin House, Cornwall, UK
* Inspired by Cologne - Imm Cologne, Germany
* Decompressions Chamber – Northern Gallery of Contemporary Art, Sunderland, UK
2006
* Max Lamb & Robert Phillips - Canary Wharf, London, UK
* Design Mart - Design Museum, London
* Made by Machine - Milan Design Week, Italy
* Made in Nigeria - Yaba College of Technology, Lagos, Nigeria.
* The Greenhouse - Stockholm Furniture Fair, Sweden.
2005
* The Shop - [[Royal College of Art]], London, UK
* ISOS Collection - Furniture Works, London, UK
* The Castle Keep - Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
2004
* Work in Progress Show - The Royal College of Art, London, UK
* Design UK Selection - Gainsborough Studios, London, UK
* Made in Newcastle - Hamals Design Shop, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
* Pulse - Earls Court, London, UK
* Design London - Superstudio 13, Milan Design Week, Milan, Italy
2003
* New Designers, Urban Interiors - Commonwealth Institute, London, UK
* Max Fraser’s Design Pick of 2003 - Gainsborough Studios, London, UK
2000
* Foundation Exhibition, Amersham & Wycombe College – Amersham, The Netherlands
== Awards ==
* 2010 –  [[HSBC]] Design Collection Commission
* 2009 –  'The Essence of the 21st Century' Courvoisier Award
* 2008 –  ‘Designer of the Future’ - Design Miami/Basel
* 2004 –  Hettich International Design Award
== Museums acquisitions and collections ==
* [[Centre national des arts plastiques|Centre National des Arts Plastiques]], Paris, France - Urushi Stool<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.cnap.fr/en_cnap/node/147775?page=4|title=Applied Arts, Craftwork and Industrial Design Commission 2015 {{!}} Centre national des arts plastiques|website=www.cnap.fr|language=en-CNAP|access-date=2017-02-01}}</ref>
* [[Israel Museum|The Israel Museum]], Jerusalem, Israel - Sheet Steel Chair
* [[Design Museum]] - London, UK
* [[Wolfsonian-FIU|Wolfsonian Museum]] - Miami, US
* [[Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum|Cooper Hewitt]], New York, US - Copper Series Chair, Pewter Stool, Scrap Poly Chair<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/people/69196999/|title=Max Lamb {{!}} People {{!}} Collection of Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum|website=collection.cooperhewitt.org|access-date=2017-02-01}}</ref>
*[[Design Museum Gent]], Belgium - Jigsaw (Richlite)
== Books / Publications ==
''Inventory Works'' (2024) published by Dent-De-Leone
''Box'' (2023) published by Dent-De-Leone
''Urushi is not Alone'' (2019) published by Dent-De-Leone
'' Max Lamb: Exercises in Seating'' (2018) published by Yale University Press
''My Grandfather's Tree'' (2015) published by Dent-De-Leone
''Exercises in Seating'' (2015) published by Dent-De-Leone
''China Granite Project II'' (2010) published by Apartamento Books
==References==
{{reflist}}
==Further reading==
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnpcnAm4L3o ''Triangular Pewter stool, 2008''] process by [[Design Museum Holon]] on YouTube
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpNQnb43ggw ''Modern Day Artisans: Max Lamb''] by [[Hypebeast Ltd.]] on YouTube
== External links ==
* [http://maxlamb.org/ Official website]
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lamb, Max}}
[[Category:1980 births]]
[[Category:People from Cornwall]]
[[Category:British furniture designers]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:British interior designers]]
[[Category:Alumni of the Royal College of Art]]
[[Category:Alumni of Northumbria University]]