John Makepeace

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John Makepeace OBE FCSD (born John Makepeace Smith; 6 July 1939) is a British furniture designer and maker. Makepeace was born in Solihull, Warwickshire. He bought Parnham House, Dorset in 1976 and founded the Parnham Trust and the School for Craftsmen in Wood (opened 19 September 1977, later to become Parnham College) [1] [2] [3] to provide integrated courses in design, making and management for aspiring furniture-makers, alongside but separately from his own furniture workshops. [4] Makepeace ceased running the Trust in 2000 when it moved to the new campus at Hooke Park under a new director who handed the premises over to the Architectural Association, the international school of architecture, for their practical modules.[ citation needed ] Makepeace sold Parnham House in 2001 to Michael and Emma Treichl, who carried out extensive renovations, before the fire in 2017 and Michael's suicide. [3] Makepeace works predominantly for private clients, but previously designed furniture for the retail market including Habitat, Heals and Liberty's.

Contents

Early life

Makepeace was born John Makepeace Smith in Solihull, Warwickshire on 6 July 1939. He is the child of Harold Alfred Smith and Gladys Marjorie Smith. Though his surname was Smith, on 27 November 1963, he would go on to change take up the surname "Makepeace", the same as his maternal grandmother's maiden name. Makepeace was first introduced to fine woodworking when he was eleven years old when he first visited a furniture maker. When he moved into his teenage years, he discovered his love for the craft when he met different cabinetmakers in Copenhagen. [5]

Career

Makepeace's woodworking career began when he started to work as a design consultant for the all India Handicraft Board. He began to also receive recognition when he became a member of the Crafts Council and the Red Rose Guild [6] in the UK and a Trustee of the V&A, London. Seeing the value of education furniture designers/makers, he bought Parnham House, Dorset in 1976, to create the Parnham Trust and the School for Craftsmen in Wood. This was opened in 19 September 1977, though would later become Parnham College. [7] [8] One of his early students here was Viscount Linley, nephew of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom. [9] Makepeace would run the Trust until 2000, when it moved to Hooke Park under a new director. [1] [2] [3] [5]

Awards

YearAward
1988Officer of the Order of the British Empire
2004Lifetime Achievement Award from American Furniture Society
2010Lifetime Achievement Award from Furniture Makers Company
2016 Prince Philip Designers Prize
2022Woodland Heritage's Peter Savill Award
Year PublishedBookAuthor(s)
1979Furniture - A Concise HistoryEdward Lucie-Smith
1980The Art of Making FurnitureJohn Makepeace
1982British Design since 1880Fiona MacCarthy
1989Design ProtectionDan Johnston
1989Sotheby's Concise Encyclopedia of FurnitureChristopher Payne
1989Encyclopedia of WoodJohn Makepeace
1991Modern Furniture Classics since 1945Charlotte and Peter Fiell
1991International CraftsMartina Margetts
1991Green DesignDorothy Mackenzie
1991The Victoria and Albert Museum Collections
1994Conservation by DesignJohn Makepeace
1995Makepeace - A Spirit of Adventure in Craft & DesignJeremy Myerson
1996Western Furniture - 1350 to the Present DayChristopher Wilk
1999Design of the 20th CenturyCharlotte and Peter Fiell
1999The Crafts in Britain in the 20th CenturyTanya Harrod
2000Twentieth Century FurnitureFiona and Keith Baker
2003Materials and Inspirational Design: WoodChris Lefteri
2005British Furniture 1600-2000 - The Twentieth CenturyChristopher Claxton Stevens
2005Furniture: World Styles from Classical to ContemporaryJudith Miller
2007Bespoke: Source Book of Furniture Designer MakersBetty Norbury
2008500 ChairsRay Hemachandra
2009Star PiecesLinley, Chislett & Cater
2011Furniture with SoulDavid Savage
2011Confessions of a Design Geek'  Interviews Volume 1Kate Treggiden
2012Handmade in BritainJoanna Norman
2012British Design from 1948: Innovation in the Modern AgeC Breward & G Wood

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References

  1. 1 2 The School for Craftsmen in Wood at Parham House
  2. 1 2 "DesignerMakers.Org.UK: John Makepeace". www.designermakers.org.uk. Retrieved 19 May 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 "Police investigating after fire ravages Grade I-listed Dorset mansion". The Guardian. Press Association. 15 April 2017. Retrieved 19 May 2018.
  4. Jeffrey Cook. "Explorations of Roundwood Technology in Buildings" (PDF). USDA Forest Service. Retrieved April 17, 2009.
  5. 1 2 "The Biography of John Makepeace". CMS. Retrieved 2022-11-21.
  6. Edwards, Clive (2005). British furniture, 1600-2000. London, England: Intelligent Layman. p. 344. ISBN   0947798307.
  7. "A finishing school for furniture makers". Financial Times. 2017-09-08. Retrieved 2022-11-27.
  8. "The father of British furniture on 40 years of Parnham College | Interiors | The Guardian". amp.theguardian.com. Retrieved 2022-11-27.
  9. "Architecture: The school that got lost in the woods - Peter Dunn on". The Independent. 1994-01-12. Retrieved 2022-11-21.

Further reading