Jurgen Bey

Bey gained an international reputation as a visionary designer under the Droog Design banner. In 2002, he founded Studio Makkink & Bey together with architect Rianne Makkink. His designs are surprising: the Tree-trunk Bench consists of three traditional chair backs in bronze that can be attached to a tree trunk; the EarChair forms a kind of acoustically shielded workplace. By zooming in on a product, for instance a lamp or furniture, and zooming out again to the level of architecture or urban planning, he shows how these seemingly different domains influence one another and are inseparable. 

An innovator who reflects on the essence and future of his field, Bey takes his ideas to the design community and a wider audience. He also teaches at the Design Academy Eindhoven and other institutes. Bey became director of the Sandberg Institute in Amsterdam in 2010.