Don Chadwick

b. 1936

A native of Southern California, Chadwick studied industrial design at UCLA in the mid 1950s. Inspired by a Charles and Ray Eames lecture, he dedicated himself to furniture design– a means through which to explore new material, innovate form, and impact people’s daily lives. In 1994, the iconic, design cult-status Aeron chair catapulted Chadwick into the global spotlight. The Industrial Designers Society of America and Business Week Magazine awarded Design of the Decade to the Aeron chair in 1999. He attributes much of his inspiration and optimism to the “LA recklessness” of his hometown– "There's less fear of failure out here, so people are more apt to take risks. It's fertile ground for innovation."