London-based studio Industrial Facility was cofounded by designers Sam Hecht and Kim Colin. Their approach reflects both a thoughtful consideration of form and a unique understanding of contemporary life, creating beauty out of utility in the products, furniture, and exhibitions they design. Hecht, from London, trained as an industrial designer, while Colin, from Los Angeles, trained as an architect. Together, they have helped their clients to produce items that display an understanding of both cultural relevance and spatial use. Remarkably, the designers’ work appears as one continuous project across a vast array of industries, where the cross-pollination of disciplines has enabled constant development of the studio’s intelligence.
Hecht and Colin desire to improve the things we live with. They don’t set out to produce something different but rather something better. They aim to design things that will last, be effective, and give satisfaction, often beyond what is called for by the product or the project. With a roster of pioneering clients, including Muji, Herman Miller, Emeco, Mattiazzi, and Santa & Cole, they are regarded for both their philosophical and pragmatic approaches. In 2018, their complete works were published by Phaidon Press in a new book titled Industrial Facility. In 2019, they became art directors for the Italian furniture company Mattiazzi.
Both Hecht and Colin are Royal Designers for Industry and Fellows of the Royal Society of Arts, honors that recognize sustained design excellence, work of aesthetic value and significant benefit to society. Their work is held in permanent collections worldwide, including the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum in New York; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art; Art Institute of Chicago; Centre Pompidou, Paris; and the Victoria and Albert Museum and the Design Museum, both in London.
Presented in partnership with the William Bronson and Grayce Slovet Mitchell Lecture Series in SAIC’s Department of Architecture, Interior Architecture, and Designed Objects
Sumner, Yuki. “The Secrets to Industrial Facility’s Success,” Azure Magazine. 17 April 2019
