Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 17, 2026

Simone Brewster

Simone Brewster is a British artist whose work spans sculpture, furniture, jewellery, painting and public architecture. Her practice explores identity, memory and cultural inheritance through what she describes as 'intimate architectures'.

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Simone Brewster
Bornc. 19831
Education
Websitesimonebrewster.co.uk

Simone Brewster (born c. 1983) is a British artist whose work spans sculpture, furniture, jewellery, painting and public architecture1. Her practice explores identity, memory and cultural inheritance through what she describes as 'intimate architectures'.2

Her work is held in collections including the Design Museum, the Victoria and Albert Museum, the London Museum, and the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C. In 2026 she was the subject of the Design Museum's PLATFORM programme, a yearlong exhibition dedicated to contemporary design practice.3

Life and career

Born and raised in London, the daughter of a Jamaican mother and Trinidadian father4, she has cited childhood visit to Trinidad as an important influence on her creative development5, describing it as an early introduction to the ways design and material culture shape everyday life.

Brewster initially studied at the Bartlett School of Architecture and UCL.67 After completing the first part of her architecture degree, she continued her studies in the Design Products Master of Arts programme at the Royal College of Art (RCA) in 2007.89 During her time at the RCA, her coursework spanned various mediums, including metalworking and ceramics, and she was tutored by designers such as Tom Dixon and Hannes Koch of the art collective Random International.10

She held her first solo gallery show in the summer of 2023 at NOW Gallery in South London.1 The exhibition, titled The Shape of Things,11 "purposefully blurred the boundaries between mediums, subject matter, geography, gender, art, craft" so that they "need not be labelled 'craft' or 'art', 'high' or 'low'".12The exhibition explored her concept of ‘intimate architectures’, a phrase that describes the relationship that texture and three-dimensional form have on memory and emotion.1314

In 2026, she was the focus of the second edition of the Design Museum's PLATFORM programme,15 "an annual display dedicated to showcasing contemporary design practice"1617 (the inaugural edition of which was devoted to fellow British designer Bethan Laura Wood).1819 It is a yearlong exhibition that runs through January 2027 and spans "the range of [Brewster's] design practice, from jewellery, furniture, sculpted forms to public architecture."162021 Reviewing the exhibition, journalist Simon Cartwright noted how her work maintains ‘a distinctive architectural and sculptural logic, translating historical reference, diasporic memory and intimate emotion into objects, jewellery, furniture and spatial interventions’.22

Brewster's work is in both private and public collections such as the Design Museum, Victoria and Albert Museum, and London Museum in the UK, and the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) in Washington, D.C.8

Selected works

Brewster's work explores identity, race, gender, cultural inheritance and the relationship between bodies, objects and space.23 Her practice moves between art, design and architecture, often drawing upon African and Caribbean histories, vernacular traditions and architectural forms.2425 A recurring concept within her work is that of 'intimate architectures'26, a term she uses to describe objects and environments that shape personal and collective experience.

In 2010 Brewster created The Mammy and The Negress, a pair of sculptural furniture works addressing historical representations of Black women. Conceived and exhibited together, the works were later acquired separately by the London Museum and the National Museum of African American History and Culture respectively. Brewster has described the works as foundational to her practice. Curator Danielle Thom has written: ‘The entire piece functions as a metaphor for Black female labour, the eponymous ‘Mammy’ stereotype on which so much white exploitation has rested.'27

Her Tropical Noire series, first developed in 2014, combines architectural references with forms inspired by African sculpture and vessel traditions.28

Brewster was commissioned by the Mayor of London and London Design Festival1529 to create an outdoor installation for the 2023 festival.301 The resulting piece, situated on the Strand and titled Spirit of Place, included five colourful totemic cork sculptures, was intended to evoke the Herdade de Rio Frio cork forest in Portugal.31 It was the culmination of a year-long collaborative process with the Portuguese cork producer Corticeira Amorim that was as part of Sadiq Khan's "Creative Economy Growth Programme".32

The Crown Combs series of sculptural combs, first exhibited in 2023, draws upon historic African hairstyles and traditions. Following their inclusion in the Walker Art Gallery exhibition Conversations, examples from the series were acquired for the museum's permanent collection.33

In 2024 she designed a series of pieces for the British homewares retailer Habitat's 60th anniversary collection.1534

Her Temple of Relics pavilion, an outdoor seating and events venue for the 2025 London Festival of Architecture was described as an "inner-city sanctuary" of "arches and obelisks".35

Personal life

Brewster has a son who was born in 2022.18

Exhibitions

Solo exhibitions

  • 2026–2027 PLATFORM: Simone Brewster, Design Museum, London36
  • 2024 Changing Tides, J/M Gallery, London37
  • 2023 The Shape of Things, NOW Gallery, London38

Group exhibitions

  • 2024 CONVERSATIONS, Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, UK39
  • 2024 Design Dialogues, Design Burger, London, UK40
  • 2021 London Making Now, Museum of London, UK41
  • 2013 Subversive Design, Brighton Museum and Art Gallery, UK42
  • 2013 The Perfect Place To Grow: Celebrating 175 Years Of The Royal College of Art, Royal College of Art, London43
  • 2011 RCA Black, Royal College Of Art, Henry Moore Galleries. London44

Publications

References

References

  1. Garrahan, Rachel (27 October 2023). "For Simone Brewster, It's Hands-On". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
  2. Cartwright, Simon. "Simone Brewster: Design as Cultural Dialogue". Aesthetica. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  3. "PLATFORM: Simone Brewster". Design Museum. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  4. Morris, Ali. "'Design isn't just about creating objects': Simone Brewster on giving voice to identity, heritage and memory". Wallpaper*. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  5. Gibson, Grant. "Simone Brewster on cork and creating 'intimate architecture'". Material Matters. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  6. "Aesthetica Magazine - Simone Brewster: Design as Cultural Dialogue". Aesthetica Magazine. Retrieved 11 April 2026.
  7. Prempeh, Charlene (10 April 2026). "Jollof, jewellery and Ridley Road Market – Simone Brewster shares her London". Financial Times. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
  8. "Simone Brewster Profile". HENI News. Retrieved 11 April 2026.
  9. Hastings, Sophie (10 August 2020). "Simone Brewster – People". The Design Edit. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  10. Garrahan, Rachel. "The Artist Simone Brewster Enjoys Making Things by Hand". The New York Times. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  11. NOW Gallery (17 August 2023). NOW Gallery The Shape Of Things by Simone Brewster PorRes422. Retrieved 13 April 2026 – via YouTube.
  12. Russell, Charlotte (4 September 2023). "Simone Brewster's The Shape of Things: The critic is left at the door". FAD Magazine. Retrieved 13 April 2026.
  13. "Simone Brewster Explores "Intimate Architecture" Through the Lens of Gender, Race, and Memory". Culture Custodian. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  14. "Simone Brewster + Roger Oates". Roger Oates. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  15. "The Crit #35: Simone Brewster". Disegno Journal. Retrieved 13 April 2026.
  16. "PLATFORM: Simone Brewster". Design Museum. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
  17. Monocle Radio (24 March 2026). Simone Brewster on the narrative of objects. Plus: the Dominican Republic’s rising design scene. Retrieved 19 April 2026 – via YouTube.
  18. "PLATFORM: Bethan Laura Wood". Design Museum. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
  19. Hedges, Frances (16 February 2026). ""Follow where your creativity takes you": how the artist Simone Brewster is breaking the mould". Harper's Bazaar. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  20. "Unseen by Design: Representation, Belonging and the Cultural Void". Design Museum. Retrieved 11 April 2026.
  21. Plugged, Art (20 March 2026). "Simone Brewster Takes Centre Stage in PLATFORM at the Design Museum". Art Plugged. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
  22. Cartwright, Simon (2 March 2026). "Simone Brewster: Design as Cultural Dialogue". Aesthetica. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  23. Cartwright, Simon. "Simone Brewster: Design as Cultural Dialogue". Aesthetica. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  24. "Crowns, Craft, and Conversations: Reflecting on Heritage". Simone Brewster. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  25. "London Gov: Simone Brewster". Mayor of London. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  26. "Unseen by Design: Representation, Belonging and the Cultural Void". Design Museum. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  27. Thom, Danielle (2026). Platform: Simone Brewster. London: Design Museum. ISBN 978-1-872005-88-1. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  28. Brewster, Simone. "Tropical Noire". Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  29. "Simone Brewster". London Design Festival. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  30. Perry, Francesca (17 September 2023). "Simone Brewster evokes a forest of cork oak trees in central London". Wallpaper*. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  31. "Spirit of Place". Dezeen. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  32. "Corticeira Amorim and Simone Brewster present Spirit of Place at the London Design Festival – Projects". Corticeira Amorim, world’s biggest cork processing group. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  33. Brewster, Simone. "Crowns, Craft, and Conversations: Reflecting on Heritage". Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  34. "Hypebeast Visits: Simone Brewster, Designing To Make a Change". Hypebeast. 25 June 2024. Retrieved 13 April 2026.
  35. Charles, Starr (18 June 2025). "Simone Brewster mimics ancient architecture for London installation". Dezeen. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
  36. "PLATFORM: Simone Brewster". Design Museum. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  37. "Simone Brewster – Changing Tides". FAD Magazine. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  38. "The Shape Of Things - Simone Brewster". New Exhibitions. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  39. "Conversations at Walker Art Gallery". National Museums Liverpool. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  40. "Simone Brewster". Design Burger. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  41. "A showcase of contemporary makers and their contribution to the capital's long history of creativity and craft". The Design Edit. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  42. "Subversive Design in Brighton - Brighton Museum". Great British Life. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  43. "RCA: The Perfect Place to Grow". Domus Web. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  44. "RCA Black and the table that thinks it's a woman". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
External links