Born in Tunisia, Tom Dixon moved to England in 1963. Wishing to fulfil his musical aspirations he dropped out of Chelsea School of Art in 1983 to play bass in the band ‘Funkapolitan’. However he was later drawn to design following a motorcycle accident, which led to him teaching himself welding in order to repair his damaged bike.
Turning his talents to furniture design, Tom rose to prominence in the mid 1980's with unusual welded designs and by the late 1980's he was working for the Italian giant Cappellini for whom he designed the Iconic ‘S’ chair. In the 1990's, he became a household name with his stacking Jack light/seat.
In 1998 Tom was appointed as head of design by Habitat and later became Creative Director until 2008. During this time he became the public face of a collective team responsible for rejuvenating the Habitat brand while maintaining founder Terence Conran's dream of enriching everyday life through simple, modern design.
Since setting up his own design company in 2002, Dixon’s work has become even more prominent with the company now selling in 52 countries.
Today he acts as the Creative Director of both Tom Dixon and Artek, the Finnish furniture manufacturer founded by Alvar Aalto.
His contributions to design have been recognised in awards and acknowledgements. In 2000, Tom’s work was awarded an OBE; he is a doctorate of the University of the Arts London; and his works are in the permanent collections of world famous museums such as the Victoria & Albert Museum, Museums of Modern Art New York and Tokyo and Centre Beaubourg (Pompidou), Paris.
Other recent awards and nominations include ‘Designer of the Year ‘, London Design Museum, ‘Best Lighting Design’, ICFF show, ‘Best Accessory’ Elle Decoration and ‘Designer of the Year‘.