Terence Conran

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Sir Terence Orby Conran (born October 4, 1931 in Kingston upon Thames , † September 12, 2020 in Berkshire ) was a British designer , furniture manufacturer , retailer and restaurant owner .

Life

Conran was educated at Bryanston School in Dorset , England. He then studied textiles, among other things, at the Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in London . After completing his studies, he began working on the equipment for the 1951 Festival of Britain in London on the South Bank . He then started working for the Dennis Lennon architectural firm , which was commissioned to design the interior of the Princess flying boat .

In 1956 Conran started his first line of furniture, Summa, and designed a store for Mary Quant . In 1964 he opened his first Habitat store in Chelsea , London. Habitat grew into a chain of stores in the decades that followed, which had great success selling housewares and furniture in modern design. The company grew by founding other companies, including a furniture store with furniture made from FSC -certified wood. In 1990 he gave up control of his companies.

Conran became known for his devotion to architecture and interior design, e.g. B. when he bought the Michelin house in the London borough of Chelsea and converted it into a Bibendum restaurant , as well as by converting the Bluebird Garage . In the early 1990s, he played an important role in the regeneration and conversion of London's Shad Thames harbor district in Bermondsey in Southwark : Conran bought the abandoned warehouse complex Butler's Wharf and turned it into a luxury complex with offices, restaurants and high-priced apartments. The Design Museum London , established and maintained by his Conran Foundation , was also originally located in Southwark. A relocation of the museum to the former Commonwealth Institute in the London borough of Kensington, which had been vacant for years, after the building had been converted, was planned since January 2012. The museum opened at the new location on November 24, 2016. The architect for the renovation was John Pawson .

Conran was also represented with a number of restaurants in London; one of his companies runs a restaurant in Edinburgh ferry terminal in Scotland . He ran restaurants and private clubs in Shoreditch , near the 2012 Summer Olympics venues in London's East End , and in the former Reuters Building on Fleet Street .

Conran Octopus , a publisher co-founded by Conran , published some of his books on interior design.

family

Conran has been married four times. The two sons Sebastian and Jasper come from the second marriage with the writer Shirley Conran (1955–1962), from the third marriage with the cookbook author Caroline Conran the sons Tom and Ned and the daughter Sophie. The son Jasper is also a designer and was chosen by the father to succeed him in the company management.

Terence Conran's sister Priscilla was married to the Italian chef Antonio Carluccio , who used to work with Conran.

Quote

"Space is the greatest luxury of our time."

- Sir Terence Conran

Honourings and prices

Publications

  • with Susan Conder: Terence Conran's plants at home . Conran Octopus, London 1986, ISBN 1-85029-056-3 .
  • Conran's Decorating with Plants . Smithmark Pub., 1990, ISBN 0-8317-2169-3 .
  • with John McGowan and Roger DuBern: Terence Conran's Garden Style. Crown Publishers, 1991, ISBN 0-517-58463-8 .
  • Terence Conran's Garden DIY: Over 75 Projects and Design Ideas for Making the Most of Your Garden , new edition. Conran Octopus, London 1995, ISBN 1-85029-723-1 .
    • German: The garden as living space: garden furniture, fences, pavilions and many other designs for the garden made of wood and stone, lovingly made . DuMont, Cologne 1998, ISBN 3-7701-4634-4 .
  • with Georgia Glynn Smith (Photos): Alcazar to Zinc: The Story of Conran Restaurants . Conran Octopus, London 2001, ISBN 1-84091-234-0 .
  • Terence Conran Small Spaces . Clarkson N. Potter / Publisher, 2001, ISBN 0-609-60940-8 .
  • Kitchens: The Hub of the home . Clarkson N. Potter / Publisher, 2002, ISBN 0-609-61052-X .
  • How to Live in Small Spaces: Design, Furnishing, Decoration, Detail for the Smaller Home . Conran Octopus Publishing, London 2006, ISBN 1-84091-473-4 .
    • German: Big ideas for small spaces: design, furniture, decoration, ideas for small houses. Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt, Munich 2006, ISBN 3-421-03591-1 .
  • with Stafford Cliff: Terence Conran's inspiration . Conran Octopus Publishing, London 2008, ISBN 978-1-84091-494-8 .
  • Essential Color . Conran Octopus Publishing, London 2011, ISBN 978-1-84091-567-9 .
    • German: Color - The most important thing. Use and combine effectively . Deutsche Verlagsanstalt, Munich 2012, ISBN 978-3-421-03848-7 .
  • New edition: Lamps & Lighting . Springer-Verlag, New York City, USA 2012, ISBN 978-1-468466614 .
  • New edition: Eco House Book. Octopus Publishing, London 2012, ISBN 978-1-84091-602-7 .
  • Plain, Simple, Useful. The Essence of Conran Style . Conran Octopus Publishing, London 2014, ISBN 978-1-84091-655-3 .

literature

  • Nicholas Ind: Terence Conran . Sigwick & Jackson, London 1996, ISBN 0-283-06294-0 .
  • Elizabeth Wilhide: Terence Conran: Design and the Quality of Life . Watson-Guptill, London 1999, ISBN 0-8230-1205-0 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ London began to swing. In: FAZ . October 4, 2011, p. 36.
  2. ↑ The island has to become a workshop again. In: FAZ. January 31, 2012, p. 29.
  3. ^ What makes Sir Terence Conran tick. September 23, 2015, accessed on September 14, 2020 .
  4. ↑ Light and feeling of space: licht.de. Retrieved September 14, 2020 .
personal data
SURNAME Conran, Terence
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Conran, Terence Orby (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British designer, furniture maker and retailer, and restaurant owner
DATE OF BIRTH October 4, 1931
PLACE OF BIRTH Kingston upon Thames
DATE OF DEATH September 12, 2020
Place of death Berkshire