Ambrose Heal (1872 – 1959) British Furniture Designer

Advertisements
Ambrose Heal A Rare Mansfield Oak Chest of Drawers With Iron Heart Escutcheons - 1stdibs

Ambrose Heal (1872–1959) was a British furniture designer. He was known for his simple and functional designs that were inspired by the Arts and Crafts movement.

Education

He studied at the Slade School of Fine Art, in London. The Slade School of Fine Art is known for its rigorous curriculum and esteemed faculty, making it a highly respected institution in the art world. Graduates from the Slade School have gone on to achieve great success in their artistic careers.

Biography

Heal served as an apprentice cabinetmaker at Plucknett, near Warwick. In 1893, he joined the family firm (established in 1810). In 1896, he began to show his furniture designs. He was a fine artisan and began to design furniture in the Arts and Crafts idiom with a predilection for solid oak, sturdy artisanship, and simple, stark lines. He was a member of the Art Workers’ Guild. In 1915, he played a role in the formation of the DIA (Design and Industries Association). From the early 1930s, he adopted the more fashionable Modern approach to furniture, following the style of his designers J.F. Johnson and Arthur Greenwood. C.F.A. Voysey also designed for him.

ICFF Furniture Fair NYC

Heal was committed to good design, particularly through the 1920s and 1930s, and brought modernism to the mass market in Britain. After visiting the 1923 Gothenburg Exhibition, he introduced Swedish glassware to’ Britain and sold Swedish furniture. In the 1950s, the firm employed many young British designers, especially of textiles. In 1983, Heal’s was acquired by the Storehouse Group under Terence Conran, which included Habitat.

Recognition

In 1933, Ambrose Heal was knighted, and in 1939, he was elected Royal Designer for Industry. These recognitions were a testament to his significant contributions to the field of furniture design and his impact on the British design industry.

Collections

Sources

Byars, M., & Riley, T. (2004). The design encyclopedia. Laurence King Publishing. https://amzn.to/3ElmSlL

Advertisements

Additional Reading

British Furniture

Agius, P. (1978). British Furniture, 1880-1915. United Kingdom: Antique Collectors’ Club. https://amzn.to/3LhhaY9

Edwards, C. (2005). The Intelligent Layman’s Book of British Furniture 1600-2000. United Kingdom: Intelligent Layman. https://amzn.to/423G1Vq

Gloag, J. (1945). British Furniture Makers. United States: Hastings House. https://amzn.to/3yuGQJd

Jackson, L. (2013). Modern British Furniture: Design Ingenuity Since 1945. Norway: Harry N. Abrams. https://amzn.to/3TaSLFR

Joel, D. (1953). The Adventure of British Furniture, 1851-1951. United Kingdom: Benn. https://amzn.to/3ZVIWhD

Payne, C. (2023). British Furniture: 1820 To 1920 The Luxury Market. Belgium: ACC Art Books. https://amzn.to/3ZXgVpi

Stafford, R.K (1970) British Furniture Through the Ages. United Kingdom: Coward-McCann. https://amzn.to/3TaTkiX

Furniture books – Amazon

* This website may contain affiliate links, and I may earn a small commission when you click on links at no additional cost to you. As an Amazon and Sovrn affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Advertisements

More on Furniture Design

  • Reuben Cary (1845 – 1933) American furniture designer

    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 →


    Learn More

  • John Mascheroni (b.1932), American furniture designer

    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 →


    Learn More

  • Francis H. Bacon (1856 – 1940) American Furniture Designer

    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 →


    Learn More

  • Sam Maloof (1916 – 2009) American furniture designer

    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 →


    Learn More

  • Mission Furniture – Design Dictionary Term

    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 →


    Learn More

  • George Nelson (1907 – 1986) American voice on design

    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 →


    Learn More

  • One of America’s Most Historic Hotels – Mission Inn

    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 →


    Learn More

  • George Nakashima (1905 – 1990) American woodworker and designer

    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 →


    Learn More

  • Emeco American Designer Furniture

    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 →


    Learn More

  • Outdoor Seating & Table System for Moroso M’Afrique by Marc Thorpe

    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…


    Learn More

  • Eames Chair Review: We Tested the Lounge Chair and Ottoman

    Eames Chair Review: We Tested the Lounge Chair and Ottoman

    First developed by lifelong couple and design partners Charles and Ray Eames in 1956, the lounge chair was the duo’s interpretation of a 19th-century club chair—designed to resemble a worn first baseman’s mitt and made of high-quality materials like supple leather, wood veneer, and cast aluminum.Read More →


    Learn More

  • Richard Schultz (1930 – 2021) American sculptor and furniture designer

    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…


    Learn More

  • “Eames Office: 80 Years of Design” Exhibition

    “Eames Office: 80 Years of Design” Exhibition

    The event will follow in fashion with the first initial debut of the concept where one could find vintage products, reprints of Mr. and Mrs. Eames, special projects and collaborations. There will be four sections namely the “Eames House” which looks into the couple’s own residence, “Architecture & Interiors,” “Art & Technology” which introduces their…


    Learn More

  • Wharton Esherick (1887 – 1970) American Sculptor and Furniture Designer

    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…


    Learn More

  • Lisa Krohn (b.1963) American Industrial Designer

    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 →


    Learn More

  • Muffy VanderBear Portrait Chair

    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 →


    Learn More

  • Edward Wormley (1907 – 1995) American furniture designer

    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 →


    Learn More

  • Russel Wright (1904 – 1976) American Industrial Designer

    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 →


    Learn More

  • No. 22 Diamond Chair by Harry Bertoia

    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 →


    Learn More

  • Gustav Stickley (1858 – 1942) American furniture designer

    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 →


    Learn More

More design articles

Advertisements

❤️ Receive our newsletter

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.