Born near Utrecht in 1963, Hella Jongerius graduated from the renowned Design Academy at Eindhoven in the early 1990s, working briefly for Droog Design before launching her solo career. Today she is one of the most important designers of her generation. Her designs combine new technological achievements with the uniqueness and importance that only handmade historic objects possess: 'I'm trying to make products that can be loved and that people want to own their whole lives to then pass them on to the family.'