We collaborate with designers who make things and who think critically about how and why things are made. These are not product commissions, they are long conversations that unfold over years; often beginning with questions about raw materials and processes, leading towards something architectural, functional, and expressive.

We look for designers who are interested in whole systems, not just finished materials—those willing to work across disciplines, rethink established processes, revive lost traditions, and challenge assumptions about permanence, utility, and form. The goal is never novelty—making something new for the sake of it—but arriving at something with lasting substance, technically, culturally, and materially.

Our decisions about the designers we work with are as intentional as the materials we produce. Their thinking shapes the outcome, their fingerprints remain in the material.

"I AM INTERESTED IN EVERY PHASE THAT A MATERIAL TRAVELS THROUGH. HOW IT GROWS, WHERE ITS PARTICLES COME FROM, WHAT IT WILL BECOME IN ITS NEXT LIFE."

Christien Meindertsma is the designer behind Flaxwood. Meindertsma’s creative practice focuses on the life cycles of products and raw materials, tackling themes of local production and underexplored resources. Through investigation, experimentation and careful documentation, she suggests sustainable alternatives to the harmful systems of mass production that have become increasingly hidden in modern-day capitalism. In encouraging a deeper understanding of the materials and products that surround us, she also challenges industry to think differently. Chirstien’s work is in the collections of MoMA, the V&A, and the Vitra Design Museum. Over the years, she has won numerous Dutch Design Awards, as well as creating the award for the prestigious Earthshot Prize.

“MOUNT ETNA IS A MINE WITHOUT MINERS – IT IS EXCAVATING ITSELF TO EXPOSE ITS RAW MATERIALS.”

Formafantasma is the Milan-based studio of Andrea Trimarchi and Simone Farresin. Since founding the practice in 2009, they have used design as a tool to investigate the political, ecological, and cultural forces embedded in materials and production systems.

Their work is grounded in research and realised through careful material exploration. Across exhibitions, installations, and industrial collaborations, they examine the often hidden connections between resources, labour, and consumption—challenging assumptions about how and why things are made.

Formafantasma has held solo exhibitions at institutions including Cambio at the Serpentine Galleries, Oltre Terra at the National Museum of Oslo, and Ore Streams at the NGV Triennial. Their work is part of the permanent collections of MoMA, the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Stedelijk Museum, and the Art Institute of Chicago, among others.

They are also behind Prada Frames, an annual symposium on design and the environment. Each edition brings together voices from across disciplines—including science, architecture, philosophy, history, and theology—to examine the social and ecological implications of production. The symposium reflects the studio’s belief that meaningful design must be informed by broader systems of knowledge and responsibility.

In collaboration with Dzek, Formafantasma developed ExCinere, a collection of volcanic-ash-glazed architectural tiles. Born from extensive fieldwork and material research in Sicily, the project explores how natural by-products of geological activity can be repurposed into durable, expressive surfaces—merging local resourcefulness with long-term architectural application.

“I WANTED TO EMPHASISE THE STONINESS OF STONE.”

Max Lamb, the designer behind Marmoreal, challenges tradition through a pragmatic, concise, process-driven approach. His material-based designs are exhibited in museums and galleries worldwide and are highly regarded by both critics and collectors. While he is best known for his studio work, making coveted one-off and small-edition works, he has successfully collaborated with several esteemed industrial manufacturers and design producers. In 2016 Lamb served as the guest designer and jury president of the Villa Noailles Design Parade, and he has served as a Lexus Design Awards mentor from 2015 through 2017. He has received numerous awards, including a 2008 Designer of the Future Award at Design Miami/Basel and the 2010 HSBC Private Bank Design Collection commission. Lamb holds a degree in three-dimensional design from Northumbria University, and an MA in design products from the Royal College of Art, London. He was a tutor for the design products MA at the RCA from 2012 to 2015. He worked for the esteemed designer Tom Dixon before setting up his own studio in London, where he now lives and works.