Barber Osgerby

Barber Osgerby is the East London design studio of Edward Barber (born in Shrewsbury, 1969) and Jay Osgerby (born in Oxford, 1969). The two met while studying architecture at the Royal College of Art and founded their studio in 1996. In…

Biography

Background

Barber Osgerby is the East London design studio of Edward Barber (born in Shrewsbury, 1969) and Jay Osgerby (born in Oxford, 1969). The two met while studying architecture at the Royal College of Art and founded their studio in 1996. In 2001 they also founded the architecture and interiors practice Universal Design Studio, and in 2012 the strategy-based industrial design consultancy Map Project Office.

Signature Style

The studio describes its approach as one of experimentation and innovation, with an exploratory attitude to materiality and colour. Early work shaped sheet materials such as plywood and perspex; later projects drew on automotive and aerospace techniques, while large installations such as Double Space (V&A, 2014) show the work's affinity with fine art.

Notable Works

Loop Table (1996) for Isokon and Cappellini
Tip Ton chair (2011) and Pacific office chair for Vitra
London 2012 Olympic Torch and a £2 coin for the London Underground's 150th anniversary
Tab lamp (2007) and the Bellhop family for Flos

Legacy

Royal Designers for Industry since 2007, winners of the Jerwood Prize (2004), appointed OBE in 2013 and awarded the London Design Medal in 2015. Their work is held by the V&A, the Design Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Art Institute of Chicago.