Corin Mellor on stainless steel, Sheffield, and designing beautiful cutlery.
Corin Mellor is the creative director of David Mellor Design – a brand that is synonymous with his father, David, but also the design and ma...
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Material Matters with Grant Gibson
Material Matters features in-depth interviews with a variety of designers, makers and artists about their relationship with a particular material or technique. Hosted by writer and critic Gr...
Episodes
20 of 156 episodesArtist Nicola Turner on horsehair, sheep's wool and her solo show at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park.
Nicola Turner is a UK-based artist who is best known for her use of horsehair and wool in her extraordinary, and often quite dark, sculpture...
John Tuomey on the importance of materials in architecture, designing London's V&A East, and his new book, Middle Quarter.
Dublin-based architect John Tuomey first appeared on Material Matters in 2024 to talk about his brilliant memoir, First Quarter. Now he’s wr...
Reusing Construction Waste with Joel de Mowbray of Yes Make
What if the materials a building needs are already sitting in a skip down the road? Joel de Mowbray, founding director of Yes Make, joins Gr...
Bonus episode: Hyosung TNC's Simon Whitmarsh-Knight on creating elastane from sugar cane.
Welcome to another summer bonus episode of Material Matters with Grant Gibson, this time in association with Hyosung TNC. In this special ep...
Bonus episode: Algae, sustainability and systems design with Rebecca Lawson of Aesop and Jessie French of Other Matter
Can algae reshape a global beauty brand's material future? In this special summer bonus episode — recorded live at Aesop's Copenhagen store...
Designing for Survival with Harry Blakiston Houston of Insulate Ukraine
Can a $21 window help a nation survive a war? Harry Blakiston Houston, founder of Insulate Ukraine, joins Grant Gibson for this landmark 150...
Hella Jongerius on craft, industry and the power of imperfection
Can imperfection reshape modern industry? Hella Jongerius — one of the most influential designers of her generation, and one of the field's...
Sewing as emotional repair with Leah Jensen
Can a needle and thread mend more than fabric? Ceramic artist Leah Jensen joins Grant Gibson to discuss the radical pivot in her practice af...
Recycling the Unrecyclable with Tom Szaky of TerraCycle
Can we actually recycle cigarette butts, dirty nappies, and coffee pods? Tom Szaky, founder of TerraCycle and the reuse platform Loop, joins...
Revolutionising waste with Sophie Thomas OBE
Can a communication designer change the global conversation on rubbish? Sophie Thomas OBE—a rare blend of campaigner, chartered waste manage...
Upcycling discarded denim with Anna Foster of ELV Denim
Can a discarded pair of jeans become a luxury item? Anna Foster, founder of the sustainable fashion brand ELV Denim, has saved thousands of...
Ending single-use plastic with Rodrigo Garcia Gonzalez of Notpla
Can seaweed eradicate single-use plastic? Rodrigo Garcia Gonzalez, co-founder of the award-winning packaging company Notpla, joins Grant Gib...
Tackling waste colonialism with Shubhi Sachan of MLI
Can a multi-disciplinary designer turn agricultural and industrial waste into raw materials for creativity? Shubhi Sachan, founder of the Ma...
Carole Collet on the magic of mycelium and regenerative design.
Carole Collet is professor in Design for Sustainable Futures at Central Saint Martins. She is also director of Maison/0, the CSM – LVMH crea...
Cubitts founder Tom Broughton on acetate and the history of spectacles.
This episode of Material Matters is as much about an object as it is a material. Tom Broughton is the founder of Cubitts, a modern spectacle...
Brodie Neill on ocean plastic (and reclaimed wood).
Brodie Neill is a Tasmanian-born but London-based furniture designer, who has made a name for himself by creating pieces from waste and recl...
James Fox on his extraordinary journey through Britain's crafts.
James Fox wears a couple of hats. He is director of studies in History of Art at Emmanuel College, Cambridge and creative director of the Hu...
Bonnie Hvillum on biomaterials and 'redefining wood'.
Bonnie Hvillum is a Danish designer and founder of Natural Material Studio, which, as the names suggests, makes its own materials using natu...
Anglepoise's Simon Terry on durability, repair and creating an icon.
Simon Terry is the brand and marketing director, as well as owner (or as he prefers to describe himself, custodian), of the lamp company, An...