Wikipedia

Faye Toogood

Faye Toogood (born 1977[1]), is a British artist and designer. She is known for her minimal, sculptural furniture designs. Speaking about her work, she said that "the world doesn't necessarily need any more chairs, but if I'm going to do something, then I hope that it will help push down barriers".[2]

Faye Toogood
MBE
Toogood pictured in 2026
Born1977 (1977)
Alma materUniversity of Bristol
Notable workRoly Poly Chair
PartnerMatt Gibberd
Websitefayetoogood.com

Work and career

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Toogood is based in London and works internationally. After taking a degree in Art History at the University of Bristol, she worked as an editor and stylist at The World of Interiors before founding Studio Toogood in 2008.[3][4][5][6] She has collaborated with companies such as Bitossi Ceramiche, Birkenstock, Carhartt, Driade, Hermès, Hem, and Poltrona Frau.[7][8][9][10]

She is known for minimal, sculptural furniture designs such as Roly-Poly Chair, a piece which is held in several museum collections. The chair consists of a scooped seat with four plinth legs. In the recent years, Toogood has diversified her style, methodology and medium. Her 2020 exhibition Assemblage 6: Unlearning included maquettes to illustrate the process of developing her work.[11]

Her practice is rooted in the shapes and materials of the English countryside, from gnarled oak trees to ancient standing stones.[citation needed] It resists categorisation and is driven by contradictions: soft and hard, practical and poetic, handmade and industrial. Toogood begins with a hands-on process. Humble materials such as cardboard and clay are used to test and rework form, before being scaled up to the point of abstraction. Whether making a chair, a large-scale installation or a piece of public art, the result carries a sense of play and a directness of touch.[buzzword]

Toogood's work has been exhibited at the Milan Furniture Fair, London Design Festival, and other trade fairs. She has also been exhibited at the Victoria and Albert Museum[12] and Somerset House in London, and international venues such as the National Theatre of Qatar in Doha, as well as a number of commercial art galleries. The Freidman Benda [d] gallery in New York has held several solo exhibitions of her work,[13] and she was included in the 2023 exhibition at Chatsworth House titled Mirror Mirror: Reflections on Design at Chatsworth.[14][15] The exhibition, which was curated by Glenn Adamson, featured pieces by Toogood alongside works by artists and designers such as Michael Anastassiades, Andile Dyalvane, Joris Laarman, Ndidi Ekubia, Ettore Sottsass, Formafantasma, Max Lamb, Samuel Ross, Joseph Walsh, and Najla El Zein.[16][17]

A monograph about her work, Faye Toogood: Drawing, Material, Sculpture, Landscape, was published by Phaidon Press in 2022.[18]

The Roly Poly Chair

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Among her most recognised works is the Roly Poly Chair, first created in 2014.[13] With its exaggerated rounded forms and sculptural presence, the piece has become an international design icon and exemplifies Toogood's enduring interest in objects that exist simultaneously as furniture and sculpture.[13][19]

Personal life

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Toogood lives in Highgate, London with her partner Matt Gibberd.[20][21] They have also restored a 19th-century manor near Winchester.[22][23]

Museum collections

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Selected solo exhibitions

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  • 2010: Assemblage 1: Supernatural, London Design Festival, London, UK
  • 2011: Assemblage 2: Natura Morta, Salone del Mobile, Milan, Italy
  • 2012: Assemblage 3: Delicate Interference, Phillips de Pury, London, UK, and New York, US
  • 2012: 7 x 7, 7 Dials, London, UK
  • 2012: La Cura, Salone del Mobile, Milan, Italy
  • 2014: Assemblage 4: Roly Poly, Milan, Italy
  • 2015: The Drawing Room, Somerset House, London, UK
  • 2015: The Cloakroom, V&A, London, UK
  • 2017: Assemblage 5: Earth, Moon, Friedman Benda, New York, US
  • 2017: Family Busts, Family Triptych Tapestry and Tools for Life Mobile 2, Friedman Benda, New York, US
  • 2020: Downtime, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, Australia[32]
  • 2020: Assemblage 6: Unlearning, Friedman Benda, New York, US[33]
  • 2022: Clay Court, National Theatre, Doha, Qatar[34]
  • 2024: Assemblage 7: Lost and Found II, Friedman Benda, New York, US[35]

Publications

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References

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  1. ↑ "Faye Toogood". Philadelphia Museum of Art.
  2. ↑ Bertoli, Rosa (13 April 2024). "'English Folk with Italian Horsepower': Faye Toogood and Poltrona Frau unveil their collaboration". Wallpaper*. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
  3. ↑ Herring, Sophia (31 March 2021). "British Designer Faye Toogood Has Teamed Up With Birkenstock for a New Line of Footwear and Furniture". Architectural Digest. Conde Nast.
  4. ↑ "Faye Toogood Debuts Sculptural Slab-Like Tables for Hem, and Other News". SURFACE. 23 February 2022.
  5. ↑ Magazine, Wallpaper* (28 September 2021). "Artist and designer Faye Toogood on how Wallpaper* shaped the way we live". Wallpaper*.
  6. ↑ Camblin, Victoria. "Faye Toogood Is Super Serious and Done Hiding It (PIN–UP 38)". Pin-Up magazine. Retrieved 2026-06-15.
  7. ↑ Rutter, Samuel (2020-03-18). "For Faye Toogood, the Rough Draft Is Also the Final Product". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-05-09.
  8. ↑ "Faye Toogood Has a New Cult Chair". Vogue. 2020-10-01. Retrieved 2022-05-10.
  9. ↑ Fiona Sinclair Scott (2 April 2021). "Tinker, Tailor, Sculptor: Faye Toogood is the designer behind a new Birkenstock bed". CNN. Retrieved 2022-05-10.
  10. ↑ "Faye Toogood and Birkenstock Debut a Capsule Collection of Custom Arizona Sandals, Comfort Clothes, and an Eye-Popping Sculptural Bed". SURFACE. 2021-04-03. Retrieved 2022-05-10.
  11. ↑ "Faye Toogood: Assemblage 6: Unlearning". Friedman Benda. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
  12. ↑ "The Cloakroom". Domus. 24 September 2015. Retrieved 2026-06-15.
  13. 1 2 3 4 "Faye Toogood". Friedman Benda. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  14. ↑ "Mirror Mirror: Reflections on Design at Chatsworth". www.chatsworth.org. Archived from the original on 2023-03-03. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
  15. ↑ Himelfarb, Ellen (2023-03-03). "These British manors have become modern art destinations". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2023-03-15.
  16. ↑ Bertoli, Rosa (2023-03-17). "Chatsworth House design exhibition explores contemporary design themes in an eclectic setting". Wallpaper. Retrieved 2023-03-17.
  17. ↑ Madlener, Adrian (2023-03-17). "How Can You Make an English Manor Filled With Old Masters Feel Contemporary? At Chatsworth House, the Answer Is Cutting-Edge Design". Artnet News. Retrieved 2023-03-19.
  18. ↑ O'Neill, Alistair; Toogood, Faye (2022). Faye Toogood Drawing, Material, Sculpture, Landscape. Phaidon Press. ISBN 9781838664046. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
  19. 1 2 "Faye Toogood, Roly Poly, 2018". Vitra Design Museum. Retrieved 2026-06-15.
  20. ↑ Pithers, Ellie (2018-12-19). "This Design Power Couple's Pared-Back London Home Is A "Minimalist Folk" Oasis". British Vogue. Retrieved 2026-06-15.
  21. ↑ Bray, Cara (2019-03-27). "Dezeen Jobs careers guide: Matt Gibberd co-founder of The Modern House". Dezeen. Retrieved 2026-06-15.
  22. ↑ Monnot, Jerome (2025-05-01). "Video: House Tour | Faye Toogood". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-06-15.
  23. ↑ Farrell, Aimee; Morrell, Martin (2025-05-01). "A House That Reimagines English Country Style". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-06-15.
  24. ↑ "Baltimore Museum of Art Acquires Work by Faye Toogood". Friedman Benda Gallery. Retrieved 2026-06-15.
  25. ↑ "Faye Toogood". Corning Museum of Glass. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  26. ↑ "Faye Toogood". Dallas Museum of Art. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  27. ↑ "Faye Toogood, Roly Poly Chair (Raw)". Denver Art Museum. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  28. ↑ "Faye Toogood, Roly-Poly Chair". High Museum of Art. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  29. ↑ "Faye Toogood". National Gallery of Victoria. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  30. ↑ "Faye Toogood, "Spade" Chair, 2011". Philadelphia Museum of Art. Retrieved 2026-06-15.
  31. ↑ "Faye Toogood, designer". RISD Museum. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  32. ↑ "Faye Toogood: Downtime". NGV. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  33. ↑ "Faye Toogood: Assemblage 6: Unlearning". Friedman Benda. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  34. ↑ "Clay Court by Faye Toogood". Qatar Museums. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  35. ↑ "Faye Toogood's 'Lost and Found II': Monoliths of the past, rediscovered and redefined". Friedman Benda. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
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