BY NICK ALLEN, 2010

Born in 1952, Nick Allen began his career as a scenery painter and back-drop maker at the Yvonne Arnaud theatre in Guilford. Even though he started as a painter he always preferred to consider himself as a designer and sculptor, hence his swiftly moving to create three dimensional objects; creating original pieces of furniture, lighting, tableware and other practical objects. Nick Allen is not afraid to use a wide range of materials, such as wood (solid and veneered), bronze, steel, pewter, glass (cast and fused), ceramics and stone. His experience has led to a number of private and public commissions, as well as collaborations with architects such as Julian Bicknell, Robert Adam, Quinlan Ferry, Rick Mather, Leon Krier and Robert Venturi.