Australian-born and London-based, designer Marc Newson has captured the attention of companies the world over since the late 1980s, when he introduced two iconic pieces—Embryo Chair and Lockheed Lounge.

1. Embryo Chair for Cappellini

An important breakthrough, Embryo Chair “laid down the DNA for much of what I was to do after that,” explains Newson. That it should have given birth to his mature style is fitting, especially given the chair’s name. Like a rotund ant covered in bright neoprene, Embryo developed some of the futuristic forms that would come to define Newson.

2. Lockheed Lounge by Marc Newson

Lockheed Lounge seems to have achieved iconic status at the exact point of its creation. Made of malleable sheets of pure aluminum, Lockheed Lounge revels in its aerodynamic shape and industrial material. The panels are fitted together and filed, leaving visible seams in the metal that give the chair a pieced-together quality akin to Dr. Frankenstein’s monster.

3. Orgone Chair by Marc Newson

In the early ‘90s Newson channeled his experimentation with aluminum into Orgone Chair, a smooth sinuous form that showcases the beauty of negative space. Newson explains, “Both the interior and the exterior of the work merge together creating a fluid and utile object with a liminal space that draws the outer surface inside and vice versa.”

4. Riga Desk for Cappellini

Loosely inspired by a jeweler’s table, Riga Desk is a little wonder for home use, with an enchanting shape and scale. The kidney bean form and tapered legs make Riga a simplified version of Art Nouveau desks.

5. Bunky for Magis

Thanks to his curvy silhouettes and colorful materials, Newson was an ideal candidate to design for children. Bunky, his first project for youngsters, re-envisioned the bunk bed as a lightweight, stackable, durable piece in rotationally molded poly. It looks a little like a space-age pod—which is particularly fun for kids who dream of becoming astronauts.

6. Orotund for Flos

Like an extraterrestrial wheel come unglued from a UFO, Orotund adds light to Newson’s futuristic forms. Indirect light within the injection die-stamped ABS lamp give Orotund an otherworldly glow.

7. Newson Aluminum Chair for Knoll

Released in 2018, Newson Aluminum Chair honors the cantilevered chairs of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. Described by Knoll as “a forward-looking expression that synthesizes simplicity, material and precision, in the Modernist tradition,” Newson’s version of the cantilevered classic is sleek, stackable, and loopy.

Get more information about the designer at Marc Newson.