Marcel Wanders is a Dutchdesigner, and art director in the Marcel Wanders studio in Amsterdam, who designs architectural, interior and industrial projects.
Life
Born in Boxtel, Wanders graduated cum laude from the Hogeschool voor de KunstenInstitute of the Arts Arnhem in 1988 after being expelled from the Design Academy Eindhoven. In 2000 he opened his studio in Amsterdam, gaining attention in 1996 with his Knotted Chair, which paired high tech materials with ‘low tech’ production methods. In 2001 Wanders co-founded the design label Moooi, of which he is co-owner and art director. In 2014 in Wanders works as product and interior designer and art director work in his Powerhouse studio with around 50 international design specialists. They have realized over 1700+ projects for private clients and premium brands such as Alessi, Louis Vuitton, Bacarrat, Bisazza, KLM, Flos, Swarovski, Puma, among others. The New York Times dubbed Wanders as the "Lady Gaga of Design" in 2011 for being unconventional, creative and full of energy. Many of his designs humanism and historical influences with innovative materials. Wanders received various design prizes, including the Rotterdam Design Prize and the Kho Liang Ie Prize. He has lectured at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Limn, the Design Academy, Nike, IDFA, FutureDesignDays and at many of the world's most prestigious design academies. In July 2002Business Week selected Marcel Wanders as one of Europe’s ’25 leaders of change’. Wanders is an Advisory Board member of THNK School of Creative Leadership.
Work
Multi-layered interior projects have become increasingly important in Marcel’s work Notable projects to date include interior architecture for such as the Andaz Amsterdam Prinsengracht, Kameha Grand hotel in Bonn, the Mondrian South Beach hotel in Miami, Quasar Istanbul Residences, and the Villa Moda flagship store in Bahrain, as well as private residences in Amsterdam and Mallorca. In 2015, he was tapped by Revolution Precrafted to design a prefabricated house which he named Eden. Many of Marcel Wanders' designs have been selected for design collections and exhibitions and feature in magazines. In 2006 he was elected International Designer of the Year by Elle Decoration. Marcel Wanders’ first solo-exhibition, ‘Daydreams,’ in 2009, featured in the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and his first major museum retrospective in 15 years is planned in January 2014 at Amsterdam’s Stedelijk Museum. In addition, Marcel regularly presents at the Salone del Mobile in Milan.
Marcel Wanders is a product and interior design studio located in Amsterdam, with clients and brands such as Alessi, Baccarat, Bisazza, Christofle, KOSÉ/Cosme Decorté, Flos, KLM, Hyatt, LH&E Group, Louis Vuitton, Miramar Group, Moooi, Morgans Hotel Group, Puma, Swarovski among others.
Moooi
In 2001, Marcel Wanders co-founded the design label Moooi, in which he has a three-fold role; he acts as owner, art director and product designer for the company.
