Hannah Bigeleisen
Hannah Bigeleisen designs sculptural furniture and lighting in Brooklyn, NY. Her designs are guided by her background in sculpture to create a formal, yet playful approach. Bigeleisen’s deep understanding of material, form, color and textures lends itself to collections that are both highly crafted and sculptural, blurring the line between design and art.
Her work has been published in The New York Times, Domino Magazine, Architectural Digest, Elle Decor Espana, Vogue Magazine, Luxe Magazine, and Interior Design Magazine. She has most recently shown at Temple Projects, QC, Collectible NY, and Inside~Out. Her newest collection will debut during NYCxDesign in 2025.
Q&A with Hannah Bigeleisen
Where did you grow up? How did it influence you?
A lot of places: Pittsburgh, PA, Atlanta, GA, Rochester, NY. Moving around a lot as a kid taught me to look for similarities in places; there will always be a library, a place to play outside, a walk we took as a family.
In a world overflowing with objects, why continue making new things?
There is a difference in mass production, fast furniture/fashion, and mass consumption and the scale at which I am producing pieces. I keep making things because I love building them, and have to get the ideas out from inside my head and into the real world.
What design movement, current or historic, do you think is the most overrated and why?
All beige interiors. It can be chic in a photograph, but people need to live in spaces that are inspiring and colorful.
What’s your favorite material to work with and why?
Cement! I love it! It was one of the first materials I explored in undergrad and have continually come back to it for its ability to be used additively, or subtractively. There are also so many ways to augment its material properties through additives or surface treatments.
If you designed a chair describing your relationship with your father, what would it look like?
It would look like my Throne Chair. My dad is one of my role models and has continually pushed me to be an artist, even when he hasn't understood what I was making or why. Our Throne Chair has such a presence that is similar to my pops, definitely makes a statement when he walks into a space, but our chair won't crack any dad jokes.
Tell us about something that inspires you.
Might sound cheesy, but long walks on the beach, watching the sun set, random travel, many books, seeing live music, talking with friends, etc
What would you do differently if you started your practice today?
Start saying no earlier
Any advice for young designers?
Just never stop making things, it will take a lot longer to get there than you think
Any regrets?
Plenty, but none that are actually pertinent to the work
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