Tracy Fong (b.1975) American Furniture Designer

Tracy Fong (b. 1975) is an American furniture designer. She was active in San Francisco and the granddaughter of Danny Ho Fong.

Education

She studied at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California.

Biography

In 1988, her first furniture line, a wicker collection named SOFA (Studio of Furniture Art), was shown at an international merchandise event in Tokyo. Her next collection of chairs and occasional pieces were shown at an international furniture event in Manila. She designed a special Southeast Asian promotion for the Seibu department store in Tokyo. Her furniture designs included the three-drawer Three-D side chair and other seating for T-Style at Fong Brothers, where she was head designer.

Variations on Wicker

Tracy Fong created a new version of the old Asian style by mixing traditional rattan with high-end woods, leather, and geometric shapes that are very modern. The result was chic and welcoming new hybrid. Like the Arc chair with its mahogany base and inverted pyramid legs and the Surabaya chair with rattan peel used as a sort of upholstery fabric over foam, she creates extraordinary chairs using ordinary materials in extraordinary ways. Her work is rooted in a meticulous artisan ethic. (Thornburg, 1990)

Exhibition

Her furniture for T-Style was shown at the 1991 New York International Contemporary Furniture Fair.

Sources

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

Thornburg. (1990, October 14). Haute Seats : Tracy Fong Designs Chairs With an Asian Flavor and a Sense of Humor. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 21, 2023, from https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-10-14-tm-3743-story.html

Recommended Reading

Designing Your Forever Home: A Blueprint for Aging with Style. (n.d.). Hearthside Homes. Retrieved December 6, 2023, from https://www.hearthsidehomessa.com/new-home-education/articles/aging-with-style

Kristal, M., Schafer III, G., Williams, B. (2012). The Great American House: Tradition for the Way We Live Now. United States: Rizzoli. https://amzn.to/3FhcIVv

Ramstedt, F. (2020). The Interior Design Handbook. United Kingdom: Penguin Books Limited. https://amzn.to/3JaONIE

Shaping the American Interior: Structures, Contexts and Practices. (2018). United Kingdom: Taylor & Francis. https://amzn.to/3T9p9bH

Tanner, T. (2013). Early American Country Interiors. United States: Gibbs Smith, Publisher. https://amzn.to/3FeN5oy

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