Artist of the day: Artist of the day, March 5, 2020: Marc Newson, an Australian product, environmental designer (#934)

Born in Sydney, Australia, Marc Newson (1963) has lived and worked in Sydney, Tokyo, Paris, and presently resides in London where his company, Marc Newson Limited, has been based since 1997. He has had ongoing relationships with companies such as Apple, Louis Vuitton, Montblanc, Hermès, Nike, Hennessy, Dom Pérignon, and Beretta to name a few. As well as overseeing his own company, he has held senior positions at clients’ companies, having been Creative Director of Qantas Airways from 2005-2015, and Designer for Special Projects at Apple since his first involvement in the design of the ‘Apple Watch’ (2014).

Marc Newson graduated from Sydney University in 1986 and with the aid of an Australian Crafts Council grant staged his first solo exhibition at the age of 23. The exhibition featured his ‘Lockheed Lounge’, a riveted aluminum chaise longue, that has arguably become one of the most iconic contemporary design works. Some 30 years later, it has set four world record prices at auction for work created by a living designer. His design pieces remain highly sought after on the secondary market and by 2010 accounted for 24% of total auction sales in the category for Sotheby’s, Christie’s, and Phillips.

Additionally, his work is presented in the permanent collections of many major museums including The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum in New York, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, etc.... He has recently been appointed Chair of the London Design Museum’s International Design Council.

As a long-term, and on-going, supporter of the charity (RED), Marc co-curated with Sir Jonathan Ive a design auction in 2013 which raised a staggering $46 million (USD) for The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria.

Marc Newson has been included in TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People and has received numerous awards and distinctions. He holds an Honorary Doctorate from Sydney University, Adjunct Professorships at Sydney University and Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and was appointed RDI (Royal Designer for Industry) by the Royal Society of Arts. In 2012, he was awarded CBE (Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

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