Four things you may have missed at the Young Furniture Makers exhibition

It’s been one whole month since the 2023 Young Furniture Makers exhibition took place in the spectacular settings of Furniture Makers’ Hall and the Dutch Church in Austin Friars, London.

Around 70 designs from 60 emerging designer-makers were exhibited at the inspirational one-day event, which was set up over 15 years ago for school children, students and graduates to showcase their work to the design community and connect with potential employers.

The event was principally sponsored by Tizo Limited and co-sponsored by Axminster Tools, Celtheath and NaughtOne.

With so much going on in one day, you would be forgiven for not catching sight of everything. Here are four things you may have missed at the Young Furniture Makers exhibition.

The Talks Programme

In addition to the stunning furniture and lighting on display, guests and exhibitors were treated to five short informative seminars that formed a Talks Programme. We were thrilled to have industry expert speakers talking about retail, recruitment, intellectual property, sustainability and choosing materials. All the talks are available to view on YouTube.

• Dr Lynn Jones – So you have a qualification. Now what? – YouTube
• Malcolm Walker – So you’ve got a design. Now what? – YouTube
• Kate Mason and Marion Horwood – Securing your intellectual property – YouTube
• Jo Knight and Rob Hamilton – Furniture and the circular economy – YouTube
• Wendy Shorter-Blake, Bill Armstrong, and Peter Pryce – Choosing materials consciously – YouTube

Chairs from the Frederick Parker Collection

We were delighted once again include a special feature of six historic and iconic chairs from the Frederick Parker Collection.

1. Eagle chair, c.1745
2. Mahogany chamber horse, c. 1795
3. Antelope chair, 1951
4. Robin Day 675 chair, 1952
5. Cardboard tub chair, 1964
6. Silver chair replica, 2007

The collection is a unique educational resource spanning over 350 years of British furniture making and design, from 1660 to the present day, comprising almost 200 chairs and an archive of related historical documents and artifacts.

The collection has a brand new website where you can browse the collection in great detail and book a visit to view it.

The Awards Ceremony

If you visited the event during the day, you would have missed out on the evening award ceremony where special guest Tomoko Azumi announced the winners of this year’s Young Furniture Makers Awards and Prizes.

Related stories Award winners announced at 2023 Young Furniture Makers exhibition New recruitment platform ‘My Furniture Career’ launched The Furniture Makers’ Company unveils My Furniture Career logo

This year’s winners were:

• National School Design Prize, sponsored by KI: Orbitron by Charlotte Woolard
• The Bespoke Award, sponsored by Axminster Tools: Lines Puzzle Cabinet by Josey Garbutt
• The Design Award, sponsored by NaughtOne: Baileigh Chair by Eden Bunce
• The Textiles Award, prizes sponsored by Parker Knoll: Sculpt by Emily Cross
• The Leather Prize, prizes sponsored by The Leathersellers’ Company: the Hide Armchair by Holly Preece
• The Idea Prize, sponsored by Colebrook Bosson Saunders: 25 Degrees by Harvey McKellar
• The Fast Track Prize, prize sponsored by Malcolm Walker: All Seeing Chair by Maria Gil
• The Best Chair in Show Prize, sponsored by Sitting Firm by Gaze Burvill: Crescent Chair by Archie Goundrey
• Best in Show Prize, prize sponsored by Blum: Lines Puzzle Cabinet by Josey Garbutt.

The soft launch of My Furniture Career

My Furniture Career is our new early careers recruitment and training website connecting young talent with employers in the UK furniture and furnishing industry. The new website offers a central resource for businesses to promote vacancies to young job seekers, feature regular inspirational content and house a comprehensive directory of training providers around the UK.

For more information, go to www.myfurniturecareer.org.uk or contact Rebecca Bertram-Smith, our education and training manager, by email at rebecca@furnituremakers.org.uk.