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Andrew Muggleton
Andrew Muggleton is a true artisan who creates
stunning furniture designs, many of which are one-of-a-
kind. In designing his contemporary furniture,
Muggleton combines extraordinary woods with metal
and glass to create furnishings with spare, elegant
lines. Dining room tables and chairs, console tables,
beds, entertainment units and sets of drawers are
crafted with a nod to comfort and an eye towards
beauty. His furniture designs are innovative but not
complicated, and usually feature large curves and a mix
of materials - solid wood, veneer, metal and glass.
SIMPLIFY, SIMPLIFY, SIMPLIFY
Much like Henry David Thoreau, a complex man of many
talents who worked hard to shape his craft and his life,
simplicity is a hallmark of Muggleton’s design
philosophy. “Keeping a design simple and avoiding the
trap of filling empty space with unnecessary clutter is my
most difficult - and most rewarding - challenge,” says
the British born designer who now works out of his
studio in Longmont, Colorado. “Simplicity in life is
difficult and complicated to achieve,” added Muggleton.
“It is easy to have too much going on and spend too
much time organizing it.”
COMPLEX PROCESS YIELDS GRACEFUL ELEGANCE
Muggleton creates high quality modern furniture by
bending and shaping exotic woods and blending other
materials such as metal and glass to achieve the
desired outcome. “The method of making curved
furniture is a complex process, which has been
practiced for centuries,” says Muggleton, who went on to
explain: “Many thin layers of wood are joined together,
placed on a mould and inserted into a vacuum press.
The vacuum press shrinks itself around the mould,
contorting the wood over the new shape. The press
delivers a cumulative pressure of almost 4 tons over the
new design.” Once the body of the work had been
created in this way, says Muggleton, the same process
is used to apply beautiful veneer onto the surface.
Elements of engineering, structure and architecture are
all incorporated into Muggleton’s work, and each serve
to inspire him daily. “Buildings, bridges and archways
new and old all provide a fundamental foundation for my
designs,” he says. Explaining his affinity for creating
curved furniture, Muggleton says, “Everything in nature is
curved, from the smooth pebbles on a beach to an egg.
Sharp jagged edges do not make you feel at ease; but a
field of straw bending in the wind, now that is inviting.
This is the reason my work involves such beautiful and
subtle curves.”
Andrew Muggleton was born in Aldershot, England. He
graduated from Nottingham Trent University with a
degree in manufacturing engineering and worked
throughout the world as a design engineer before
moving to the United States in 1999 to develop his
passion for furniture design. His work has been
featured in a number of well respected magazines,
including The Robb Report, Architecture & Design of the
West, Northern Home, Phoenix Home & Garden
Magazine Interiors & Sources Editors' Choice Product
Picks, and Wood Art Today. For more information, or to
request a brochure, visit www.AndrewMuggleton.com.
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