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Muirhead Leather Design Competition winner announced
Young designer Lucy Burgess was announced as the winner of the Muirhead Leather Design Competition last night during a ceremony at the Goldsmiths’ Centre in Clerkenwell.
Lucy, who studies Textiles in Practice at Manchester Metropolitan University, was awarded first place for her design titled ‘British Wildlife’, a modern lounge chair incorporating eye-catching arts and crafts inspired imagery.
She was presented a certificate and cheque for £1,000 by Colin Wade, Managing Director of Andrew Muirhead & Son Limited.
In addition to the cash prize, Lucy has won a three-week work placement at Muirhead, where she will get to see her design come to life.
Michael Brennan, a student at Newcastle College, was the runner-up and was presented with a certificate and a cheque for £500.
The Muirhead Leather Design Competition was launched by Muirhead in conjunction with The Furniture Makers’ Company in 2015 to celebrate the Glasgow-based company’s 175th anniversary and the launch of its ground-breaking technology that enables printing of high resolution digital images and designs onto leather.
The competition asked UK furnishing students to design a piece of leather upholstered furniture that would showcase the quality and capability of the technology.
The entries were judged by a panel of experts including: David Dewing, Master of The Furniture Makers’ Company for 2015-2016; Colin Wade; Rupert Senior, Chairman of the Guild Mark Committee at The Furniture Makers’ Company; Jonny Westbrooke, Clerk and Chief Executive at The Furniture Makers’ Company; and Damilola Bamidele, Grants and Education Manager at The Furniture Makers’ Company.
Lucy’s winning design will be unveiled at The Furniture Makers’ Company’s Fourth Royal Charter Dinner, which takes place at Skinners’ Hall, London on Tuesday 25 October 2016.
Lucy said: “I’m absolutely thrilled to have won this award. Inspired by the arts and crafts movement, in particularly the work of William Morris and the furniture of William Burges, my aim was to create a traditional design with a modern twist that would be suitable for a wide market.”