Tom Dixon Bio
Born in Sfax, Tunisia in 1959, to a French/Latvian mother and an English father, Tom Dixon moved to England at age four and spent his school years in London. He dropped out of Chelsea School of Art to play bass in the band Funkapolitan before teaching himself welding and going on to produce furniture.
Tom rose to prominence in the mid 1980's as "the talented untrained designer with a line in welded salvage furniture". He set up 'Space' as a creative think-tank and shop front for himself and other young designers. By the late 1980's, Tom Dixon's international reputation grew, he was approached by Italian furniture design company, Cappellini, for whom he desinged the Iconic "S" chair. In the 1990's, he became a household name and Jack, his polypropylene "sitting, stacking, lighting thing" designed for his own company Eurolounge was a symbol of the age.
Tom Dixon's appointment as Head of the UK design studio at the furniture retailer Habitat in 1998 was considered controversial. He came from a self-employed background instead of a corporate culture and was never considered "establishment". Tom Dixon led the company through its biggest makeover and quickly won recognition by becoming Head of International Design in 1999 and Creative Director in 2001. He was the public face of a collective team responsible for rejuvenating the Habitat brand, while maintaining Terence Conran's dream of enriching everyday life through simple, modern design and creating a shopping experience that is theatrical and intimate.
In 2000, Tom's work was recognized by the award of an OBE by Her Majesty The Queen. His works have also been acquired by the world's most famous museums and are now in permanent collections across the globe including Victoria and Albert Museum, Museums of Modern Art New York and Tokyo and Centre Beaubourg (Pompidou).
"Honestly, I can't remember ever holding an ambition to be a designer. It just slowly came over me as I rejected notions of being an artist or a craftsman. Even today I prefer the idea of being an industrialist." - Tom Dixon."
