Dakota Jackson is an American furniture designer best known for his Dakota Jackson furniture line. He was a magician’s son, and by the time he was six, he became a professional magician. He performed in public until his early 20s.
Biography
Jackson began his career as a consultant to stage magicians and rock bands who wanted to incorporate illusion into their performances. He transitioned from magic to furniture; he was involved in building boxes in which assistants were placed to be sawn in half or levitated.
In the early 1970s, he created his first furniture design (commissioned by Yoko Ono for John Lennon). Yoko asked her to make a desk for her husband. She envisioned a writing table resembling a Chinese puzzle, complete with hidden compartments. He had never made real furniture before, so completing the desk took some time. He soon received commissions from other celebrities as a result of word of mouth.
He created a bar for actor Pete Allen, a desk for a television producer, and a vampish bed for socialite-fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg. The bed, dubbed the eclipse, was created to depict the sun and moon in the sky at the same time. Behind the headboard were lights that turned on automatically at sunset, grew brighter throughout the evening, and then turned off at 2.30 a.m.
‘Vik-ter range’ stacking chair designed by Dakota Jackson 
Ke-zu armchairs, pair designed by Dakota Jackson 
Dakota Jackson, Bar Cabinet, USA, 1979
He designed and built his furniture. In 1991, he debuted his ‘Vikter’ furniture line, which included the Stacking Chair. He creates furniture that makes inventive use of new materials, and he gives his pieces unusual and sometimes unpronounceable titles.
Dakota Jackson in our partner stores
Sources
Byars, M., & Riley, T. (2004). The design encyclopedia. Laurence King Publishing.
More American Furniture Designer
-
No. 22 Diamond Chair by Harry Bertoia
No. 22 Diamond Chair by Harry Bertoia. Many would argue that this is more of a sculpture than a chair. READ MORERead More →
-
George Nelson (1907 – 1986) American voice on design
George Nelson (1907 – 1986) was an American industrial designer. His Storagewall shelf system, which he made in 1945, changed the way offices worked. The Marshmallow sofa from the 1950s is one of his best-known pieces.Read More →
-
Gustav Stickley (1858 – 1942) American furniture designer
His German name, Stoeckel, was anglicised to Stickley by his émigré parents. In Pennsylvania, he worked in his uncle’s chair manufacturing with his brothers. Stickley brothers Gustav, Charles, Albert, Leopold, and John George all worked in the furniture industry.Read More →
-
Billy Wilder Chaise Lounge by Charles and Ray Eames
The Wilder Chaise 1968 Lounge is a masterpiece of design created by Charles and Ray Eames, featuring a nylon-coated cast aluminium frame and base with a leather-covered polyurethane foam upholstered seating section. It is functional and adds elegance to any living space.Read More →
-
Richard Schultz (1930 – 2021) American sculptor and furniture designer
In 1951, he became a member of Knoll’s design development group. Initially, he collaborated on the wire Diamond sitting collection with Harry Bertoia. Schultz designed the Petal table in 1960, steel-wire lounge chairs in 1961, and outdoor Leisure Collection seating and tables in 1966 for Knoll. He designed a 1981 collection of outdoor furniture while…
-
Russel Wright (1904 – 1976) American Industrial Designer
Wright’s design philosophy was based on the idea that the table was the heart of the home. He developed everything from tableware to larger furniture, architecture to landscaping, all of which promote comfortable, informal living.Read More →
-
Extension Table a perfect design for small spaces
An extension table is a table whose length can be increased by inserting a leaf or leaves. The Pulman Extension Table is made of durable solid wood and can be used in various settings.Read More →
-
Lisa Krohn (b.1963) American Industrial Designer
Lisa Krohn studied three-dimensional form with Rowena Reed Kostello, New York, between 1985 and 1986. From 1985 to 1985, she studied art history and visual arts at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. From 1988 to 1988, she was a student at the Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.Read More →
-
Mission Furniture – Design Dictionary Term
The term mission furniture was first popularized by Joseph P. McHugh of New York, a furniture manufacturer and retailer. The word mission references the Spanish missions throughout colonial California. The style became increasingly popular following the 1901 Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo.Read More →
-
Tracy Fong (b.1975) American Furniture Designer
Tracy Fong is an American furniture designer who created a new version of an old Asian style by mixing traditional rattan with high-end woods, leathers, and geometric shapes. Her work is rooted in a meticulous artisan ethic and was shown at the 1991 New York International Contemporary Furniture Fair.Read More →
-
Reuben Cary (1845 – 1933) American furniture designer
Cary’s father moved to the Adirondacks area of New York State in the year 1845. In 1874, Brandreth asked Cary to make him 24 chairs with slatted backs, plain turned legs, and splint seats in a traditional style. Cary may have made some of the rustic furniture in the cottages at Brandreth Park.Read More →
-
John Mascheroni (b.1932), American furniture designer
John Mascheroni has been designing furniture for his entire career, recognized for his design acuity and modernism. LEARN MORERead More →
-
Francis H. Bacon (1856 – 1940) American Furniture Designer
He was a designer for furniture maker Herter Brothers, commissioned by the company to furnish the New York William H. Vanderbilt House, 1881-83. LEARN MORERead More →
-
Sam Maloof (1916 – 2009) American furniture designer
The furniture designed by Sam Maloof can be found in every imaginable place in the United States, from boardrooms to bungalows, from the White House to the Smithsonian. READ MORERead More →
-
One of America’s Most Historic Hotels – Mission Inn
Frank Miller built the Mission Inn for people passing through California in the 1800s. It’s a Spanish-colonial-style hotel, which has been remodelled many times over time, with plenty of onsite production – such as balconies, light fixtures, and door handles.Read More →
-
George Nakashima (1905 – 1990) American woodworker and designer
In 1934, he worked in the Indian office of American architect Antonin Raymond. In 1937, in the Tokyo office, he studied Japanese carpentry techniques. In 1941, he set up his first workshop in Seattle. In 1942 in Idaho, Nakashima studied with an old Japanese carpenter until Antonin Raymond arranged his release. Read More →
-
Emeco American Designer Furniture
Wilton C. Dinges founded the Electric Machine and Equipment Company (Emeco) in 1944 with $300 in savings and a used lathe for machine work. He started bidding on government manufacturing contracts out of a loft in Baltimore, Maryland, beginning with experimental antennas and jet engine parts. Read More →
-
Outdoor Seating & Table System for Moroso M’Afrique by Marc Thorpe
Eight years into their collaborative relationship, New York-based designer Marc Thorpe is launching his latest piece for Moroso for their outdoor collection called Moroso M’Afrique. DayTrip comprises various components that are used as low tables and benches that pay homage to the Italian brand’s multi-cultural ethos. The design allows the user to create a composition for…
-
Wharton Esherick (1887 – 1970) American Sculptor and Furniture Designer
As a result, his sculptural furniture and furnishings are his most well-known works. For his leadership in designing non-traditional designs and supporting and inspiring artists/craftspeople by example, Esherick was dubbed the “dean of American artisans” by his peers during his lifetime. Esherick’s impact can still be apparent in contemporary artisans’ work, especially in the Studio…
-
Muffy VanderBear Portrait Chair
Barbara Isenberg of New York inspected store inventories of soft toys in the mid-1970s and found them deficient. Isenberg wanted a teddy bear for her small kid that had the same quality, charm, and cozy textures as the ones she remembered from her youth. Read More →
-
Edward Wormley (1907 – 1995) American furniture designer
He worked as a designer for Dunbar Furniture of Indiana in New York from 1931 to 1941, improving the company’s variety of wood and upholstered furniture to appeal to a wide range of interests.Read More →
You may also be interested in
Don Albinson – American furniture designer – Encyclopedia of Design
Don Albinson was an American Furniture Designer. He studied in Sweden, Cranbrook Academy of Art, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, and Yale University. The 1965 stacking Albinson chair produced by Knoll was similar to British Designer’s Robin Day trendy chair for Hille, although Albinson’s was more sophisticated.
George Washington Maher (1864 – 1926) American furniture designer and architect – Encyclopedia of Design
George Washington Maher (1864 – 1926) was a furniture designer and architect from the United States. He worked as an apprentice in Joseph Lyman Silsbee’s architecture office alongside Frank Lloyd Wright and George Grant Elmslie. Early on in his career, Maher’s work was ornate and monumental.
Comments are closed, but trackbacks and pingbacks are open.