James Irvine – British industrial designer in Milan

James Irvine (1958–2013) was a London-born industrial designer who spent most of his career in Milan. He was known for calm, unpretentious objects that put function and use first, from chairs and lamps to city buses, and he worked with several Scandinavian manufacturers, including Swedese, Wästberg and Offecct.

Background

Irvine studied at Kingston Polytechnic and the Royal College of Art in London, graduating in 1984. The same year he moved to Milan to work in the Olivetti design studio under Michele De Lucchi and Ettore Sottsass, and in 1987 he spent time researching industrial design at Toshiba in Tokyo. He founded his own studio in Milan in 1988 and for a period also led the industrial design group at Sottsass Associati. Among his best-known projects are the city buses he designed for Hanover’s public transport around Expo 2000, furniture for Thonet and the Muji Thonet chair.

Design approach

Irvine preferred simplicity to spectacle. Writing about his task lamp for Wästberg, he described the aim as a calm object with a simplified mechanism, one that moves but does not try to do everything. That restraint made him a natural partner for Nordic companies.

Designs for Scandinavian brands

For Swedese he designed the stackable Sonia chair, shown at the Stockholm Furniture Fair 2001, and the X-tables folding tray tables presented the following year. In 2008 Wästberg launched the Irvine w08 task lamp, alongside lamps by Claesson Koivisto Rune and Jean-Marie Massaud. His conversations with Offecct in 2011 led to Tool, an adjustable side table completed by Studio Irvine in 2015, after his death.

Recognition

In 2004 Irvine was guest of honour at the Biennale Interieur in Kortrijk, together with Kirsti Paakkanen of Marimekko. For the fair he curated the Design Anatomy exhibition, which included work by Harri Koskinen for Iittala. He was also a member of the informal design group Bigsnake with Jasper Morrison and Marc Newson, among others. His studio continues in Milan as Studio Irvine, led by Marialaura Rossiello Irvine.

By Editorial Team, ScandinavianDesign.com