Michael Young (born 23 August 1966) is a British industrial designer and creative director based in Hong Kong. He works in the areas of product, furniture and interior design with studios in Hong Kong and Brussels.[2] He is known for unconventional use of materials and manufacturing processes,[3] and collaborations with brands such as Brionvega, Cappellini, KEF, La Manufacture, and MOKE International.[4][5][6] He is interested in "how disruption in society always has a design response, because it usually creates a need for things that perform."[7]
In 1994 he started his own studio and operated in England, Iceland, Taiwan before settling in Hong Kong in 2006 to avoid becoming a "European design casualty, wandering from trade fair to trade fair."[16][17][18] Young has been the creative director for 100% Design Shanghai (2010, 2011, 2012),[19][20] prior to which he was the creative director for 100% Design Tokyo (2008), and creative director of the Asian Aerospace show (2009). He is a frequent public speaker, panellist, and design award jury member.[21][22][23]
Hex table prototype verification (2014)
Young has designed a wide variety of objects such as headphones, glassware, watches, bicycles, furniture, lighting, suitcases, as well as limited edition experimental furniture.[24][25] He is interested in combining design with technical abilities of the local industry and often works directly with Chinese manufacturers and industrialists.[11][26] Throughout his career, he worked with clients such as Bacardi, Cathay Pacific, Coalesse, Coca-Cola, Emeco, Giant Bicycles, Gufram, M2O, Magis[it], Georg Jensen, Trussardi, Schneider Electric, Steelcase, Swedese, and WonderGlass.[27][28][29][30][31][32][33][12] The historian and curator Maria Cristina Didero described "his continuous testing of new technologies to push boundaries" as "a means [...] not an end", saying that "Michael is special in everything he does."[34]
MOKE recreational vehicle designed by Young (c.2022)
In 2012, Young was approached by Chery subsidiary MOKE International to design a 21st-century version of the Moke (styled MOKE).[36] Young has said he considered this project a "call of duty".[37] In 2018 Young re-engineered a continuation model, which is also used as the basis for the Electric Moke.[38][39][4]
His work has been exhibited the Design Museum in London, the Pompidou Centre and the Louvre Museum in Paris,[22] and at solo exhibitions in Kyoto, Miami, Hong Kong, Milan, Paris and Belgium in 2016 for an exhibition curated by Didero called Al(l) Projects with Aluminum at the Centre d'Innovation et de Design at Grand-Hornu.[40][41][42][43]
In 2024, Young's collaboration with Japanese master craftsmen Nambu Tekki was included in an exhibition at Kudan House in Tokyo called Craft x Tech Tohoku Project (also curated by Didero).[45] The work, titled Blossom Links, was described as an exploration of "heritage and contemporary technology [with a] history dating back centuries", the pieces in the exhibition seek to "[bring] Japan’s traditional crafts to a new, contemporary audience."[46] The show included works by Sabine Marcelis, Studio Swine, Ini Archibong, Yoichi Ochiai, and Hideki Yoshimoto.[47][48][49] The work was subsequently exhibited at Design Miami Art Basel, and then at the Victoria and Albert museum in London during the London Design Festival.[50][51][52][53][54]
Also in 2024, Young's extruded aluminium Totem light sculptures were exhibited at Gallery ALL in Shanghai.[55][56][57]
The Hanger Tree by Katrin Olina Petursdottir and Michael Young was featured on a series of Icelandic postage stamps celebrating contemporary design.[60][61]
Personal life
Young has spoken openly about growing up with dyslexia and how this impacted his education and career, stating "Dyslexia very much prevented me from becoming an academic. Every day in class I was left in my own imagination. I didn't really absorb any information from mathematics, English, geography, history […] I made my own universe and kind of built my own way."[62][63][64]
He has 3 sons, Freddy Mars, Jasper Wilde, and Ruben Michael.[64]
Awards
Craft x Tech Tohoku Project at Design Miami Art Basel (2024)
2022 Design Guild Mark Award, Joseph Collection for EOQ[80]
2024 DESIGN MIAMI.BASEL Best Curio Presentation: Craft x Tech[65][66][81]
Publications
Al(l) Projects in Aluminium by Michael Young (Stichting Kunstboak, 2016). Borka, Max; Chen, Aric; Didero, Maria Cristina; Pok, Marie. ISBN978-90-5856-540-2.[82]
Modern Furniture, 150 Years of Design (Trandem Verlag GmbH, 2009; H.F. Ullmann. 2012) ISBN978-3-8480-0030-2[91]
Gallery
This section needs expansionwith: better photographs of the designer's work. You can help by adding to it. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page.(April 2025)
↑ Schwarz, Suzanne (28 August 2024). "Kreationen". architektur-technik.ch (in German). Retrieved 6 July 2025.
↑ Maria Cristina Didero; Marie Pok; Max Borka (2016). Al(l): projects in aluminium by Michael Young. Oostkamp: Stichting Kunstboak. ISBN978-90-5856-540-2. OCLC944160332.
↑ Volker Albus; Andrea Mehlhose; Martin Wellner; etal. (2012). Modern furniture: 150 years of design = Meubles modernes: 150 ans de design = Moderne Möbel: 150 Jahre Design (Updateded.). Potsdam: H.F. Ullmann. ISBN978-3-8480-0030-2. OCLC760978529.
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