Interview
Matt Arquette
1 Congratulations on winning the MUSE Design Awards! Can you introduce yourself and share about what inspired you to pursue design as a career?
I’m Matt Arquette, a designer with over 20 years of experience in furniture design, driven by a fascination for form, color, and the emotional potential of objects. Design became my path because it allows me to turn imagination into tangible experiences that people can feel and inhabit. I’m inspired by the world around me, constantly observing, experimenting, and exploring how materials and shapes can evoke emotion and movement. Every project is an opportunity to refine my voice and push the boundaries of what furniture can be.
2 What does being recognized in the MUSE Design Awards mean to you?
Being recognized by the MUSE Design Awards is both an honor and a validation of the risks and experimentation I embrace in my work. It’s a reminder that pursuing bold ideas and challenging traditional forms resonates beyond the studio, reaching people who share a love for creativity. This recognition also fuels my drive to continue exploring new directions in design.
3 How has this achievement impacted your career, team, or agency, and what opportunities has it brought so far?
Winning the MUSE Design Award has been a wonderful affirmation of our creative approach. It has strengthened our confidence in exploring bold ideas and sharing them with the world. Recognition like this also helps open doors subtly—it signals to potential collaborators and clients that we are committed to innovative design and quality.
4 What role does experimentation play in your creative process? Can you share an example?
Experimentation is at the core of my process—it allows me to discover unexpected forms and interactions. For the Wing Chair, I played with Lucite in a way that gave the chair both transparency and color, creating a sense of lightness and fluidity. This hands-on exploration of material and form was essential to achieving the organic wings that define the chair’s character.
5 What's the most unusual source of inspiration you've ever drawn from for a project?
I often draw inspiration from nature, movement, and even fleeting moments in daily life. For the Wing Chair, the sense of flight and freedom in birds’ wings sparked the fluid shapes of the design. Sometimes the most unconventional ideas come from observing the world around you without expecting to design anything—it’s a moment, a gesture, a pattern, or a shadow that triggers creativity.
6 What’s one thing you wish more people understood about the design process?
I wish more people understood that design is both intuition and iteration. A concept might start as an abstract idea, but it takes exploration, testing, and refinement to transform it into a piece that works in both function and feeling. The process is rarely linear, and each misstep often leads to unexpected discoveries.
7 How do you navigate the balance between meeting client expectations and staying true to your ideas?
I see client collaboration as a dialogue rather than a compromise. Understanding their vision is essential, but I also bring my perspective, pushing ideas further to create something unique. The best outcomes happen when there’s mutual trust, allowing creativity to flourish while still addressing the client’s needs.
8 What were the challenges you faced while working on your award-winning design, and how did you overcome them?
Since the Wing Chair is a concept, the challenge was not prototyping but refining the form to achieve the right fluidity, proportions, and curvature. It took careful iteration on paper and in digital models to ensure the wings felt organic and the overall silhouette conveyed lightness and movement. The process was about precision, patience, and visual intuition.
9 How do you recharge your creativity when you hit a creative block?
I step away from the studio and immerse myself in experiences that spark curiosity—nature, architecture, art, or a walk with family and friends. Music also helps me reset, opening new perspectives and energy. Observing the world with fresh eyes reminds me that creativity thrives when you stay open to everything around you.
10 What personal values or experiences do you infuse into your designs?
Sustainability, exploration, and curiosity are central to my work. I consider environmental impact, material innovation, and timelessness in every project. My designs reflect a balance between aesthetics and responsibility, aiming to create pieces that evoke emotion while being conscious of their footprint.
11 What is an advice that you would you give to aspiring designers aiming for success?
Stay curious, take risks, and trust your instincts. Success comes from combining persistence with openness to learning, observing, and experimenting. Don’t be afraid to push boundaries, but always remain grounded in the human experience—design is ultimately about connection and interaction.
12 If you could collaborate with any designer, past or present, who would it be and why?
I would love to collaborate with a designer who embraces bold colors, fluid forms, and futurism—a visionary who sees design as both art and experience. Working with someone who challenges convention and celebrates playful innovation would be a chance to expand my own creative language.
13 What's one question you wish people would ask you about your work, and what's your answer?
I wish people asked, “What feeling do you want this piece to evoke?” I would then answer, for me, design isn’t just about shape or function—it’s about creating a moment, a mood, or a sense of wonder. Every piece, like the Wing Chair, is meant to invite someone into an experience, to feel both comfort and imagination.
