Zelouf & Bell Furniture Makers
Irish
Studio furniture makers Zelouf & Bell and their team of master craftsmen have been making museum-quality furniture in their workshop in rural Ireland since 1992. Their award-winning work is in private collections, public offices, embassy residences, churches and museums, at home and abroad.
Benoist Drut of Maison Gerard, who represent Zelouf & Bell, describes their work as “precious, clever, refined, fearless, unexpected, poetic.” Curator Dr. Jennifer Goff of the National Museum of Ireland, having acquired three pieces for the museum's permanent collection, refers to Zelouf & Bell's work as “true modern classics”.
A convergence of two oceans, the alliance of Belfast-born Michael Bell and New Yorker Susan Zelouf may seem a collision of cultures and characters; instead, a kind of alchemy occurs, engendering extraordinary pieces grounded in practicality, a dialogue between art, history and design. Zelouf & Bell’s approach embraces the handmade, merging materiality with technique. Commissions undertaken and shipped worldwide.
Featured Work
C.V. (Resume)
EXHIBITIONS
Solo Exhibitions 1993 ‘Wood for the Trees’, The Furniture Gallery, Dublin 1995 ‘Grey Area/Functional Art’, Guinness Hopstore, Dublin 2007 ‘Back to Black’, Smoketree Building, Twentynine Palms, California 2012 ‘Retrospect’, Motor House Gallery at Farmleigh, Irish State Guesthouse, Phoenix Park, Dublin 2013 ‘21st Century Classics’, Le Centre Culturel Irlandais, Paris, France Selected Exhibitions 1992 Crafts Council Christmas Show 1993 The Furniture Gallery 1994 CCOI Interiors, curated by Rachel Lamb 1995 Anya Von Gosseln Gallery, Dublin 1996 Dolmen Gallery, Limerick 1996 Riverrun Gallery, Galway 1996-97 DESIGNyard 2002 National Crafts Fair, Dublin 2003 RDS National Crafts Travelling Exhibition 2003 Philadelphia Museum of Art Craft Show 2003 Create 2003, Fota House, Cork 2005 Collectors Event, CCOI, Kilkenny Arts Festival 2005 Plan Expo, Dublin 2005 Philadelphia Museum of Arts Craft Show, Philadelphia, PA, USA 2005 Create 2005, Fota House, Cork 2005 Collectors Event, Hunt Museum, Limerick 2006 Celebration of Craftsmanship, Cheltenham 2006 Urban Retreat Gallery, Dublin 2007 Celebration of Craftsmanship, Cheltenham 2007 Bespoke, Worshipful Company of Furniture Makers, London 2007 Exquisite, Dublin 2007-08 Bespoke Gallery, Cheltenham 2008 Exquisite, Cork 2008 Interiors, RDS 2008 Celebration of Craftsmanship, Cheltenham 2008 Luxury, K Club, Kildare 2009 Decorex, London 2009 Portfolio, Dublin 2009 Interiors, RDS 2009 Cream of Irish, RDS 2010 Architectural Digest MADE, New York 2010 Philadelphia Invitational Furniture Show 2010 Interiors, RDS 2010 100% Design, London 2011 Architectural Digest MADE, New York 2011 Philadelphia Invitational Furniture Show 2011 ICFF, New York (juried by The Furniture Society) 2012 Reconstructed Rooms, National Museum of Ireland 2012 COMMEMORATE, SPACEcraft, Belfast, Northern Ireland 2012 47th Irish Antiques Dealers Fair, Dublin 2012 Philadelphia Museum of Art Craft Show, Philadelphia, PA, USA 2013-14 Galerie David Hicks, Paris, France 2013 ‘After & Since’, Newtownbarry House, Co. Wexford 2013 48th Irish Antiques Dealers Fair, Dublin 2013 ‘Waterland’, Waterways Ireland Visitors Centre, Dublin 2014 ICFF, New York, with Bespoke Global 2014 Irish Art in Cambridge, Gonville & Caius College Library 2014 Paris Deign Week, Galerie Joseph 2014 49th Irish Antiques Dealers Fair, Dublin 2014 Portfolio, Selected Works, Royal Hibernian Academy 2015 Maison et Objet, Paris, Scenes d’Interieur 2015 Architectural Digest Design Show, NY 2015 Side by Side, National Craft Gallery, Kilkenny 2015 Side by Side, Le Centre Culturel Irlandais, Paris 2015 Portfolio at The Solomon Gallery, Dublin 2015 Playing with Tradition, Dublin Castle 2015 Solomon Fine Art at the Irish Antiques Dealers Fair 2016 Maison et Objet, Paris with Design Ireland, DCCOI 2016 MADE 2016, CDC Belfast 2016 Architectural Digest Design Show, NY 2016 Solomon Fine Art, Dublin 2016 Decorex International, London 2016 Solomon Fine Art at the Irish Antiques Dealers Fair 2017 Architectural Digest Design Show, NY 2017 Collective Design Fair, NY, represented by Maison Gerard 2017 Salon NY, represented by Maison Gerard 2017 Narrative in Making, PORTFOLIO: Critical Selection 2017-2018, National Craft Gallery, Kilkenny + Wales 2017 House, RDS Dublin 2017 Decorex International, London 2017 Royal Ulster Academy Annual Exhibition at the Ulster Museum 2018 TEFAF New York, featured works with Maison Gerard 2018 Decorex International, London 2018 Salon NY, represented by Maison Gerard 2018 House, RDS Dublin 2019 Surface Matters, PORTFOLIO: Critical Selection 2019-2020, Dublin Castle 2019 House, RDS Dublin 2019 Women in Design Conference (Guest Speaker) 2019 Surface Matters, PORTFOLIO: Critical Selection 2019-2020, Artesania Catalunya, Barcelona 2019 Surface Matters, PORTFOLIO: Critical Selection 2019-2020, National Craft Gallery, Kilkenny 2020 Maison & Objet, Paris Awards 1994 Forbairt Perpetual Craft Trophy, Showcase 1996 RDS Irish Forestry award for Craft in Wood 1996 EBS Crafts Competition 1998 EBS Crafts Competition 1998 Forbairt New Product at Showcase, category winner 1998 Forbairt Perpetual Craft Trophy 1999 EBS Crafts Competition 1999 Plan Expo New Product of the Year award 2000 Plan Expo Best Design-led Furniture award 2001 Irish Joinery Award for Conference Room, Government Supply Agency 2003 Irish Joinery Award for Old Market Room, Irish Stock Exchange, Dublin 2004 Laois National Enterprise Award 2004 RDS National Crafts Competition 2005 Create 2005 John Makepeace Furniture Oscar, shortlist 2015 PORTFOLIO: Critical Selection 2015-2016 2015 IFDA NY (International Furnishings and Design Association, NY chapter): Best in Show, Decorative Accessories, Architectural Digest Home Design Show 2015 ADORNO Magazine: Best in Show, overall craftsmanship, Architectural Digest Home Design Show 2017 PORTFOLIO: Critical Selection 2017-2018 2019 PORTFOLIO: Critical Selection 2019-2020 TV 2012 CraftMaster Judge 2012-2014 RDS Crafts Competition
Collections
Permanent collections 2013 Ladderblack chair: National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks 2011 Koi Noir: National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks 2004 Drum cabinet: National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks 1993 Console table and mirror: Guinness Hopstore Publications (in which work is reviewed or illustrated) 2005 Standard Setter, Irish Arts Review 2006 Style Source: Ireland Interiors Eoin Lyons, Curragh Press 2007 Rowan Gillespie, Looking for Orion Roger Kohn, O’Brien Press 2008 Fine Woodworking, cover feature 2013 Irish Arts Review, 21st Century Classics by Eleanor Flegg 2013 Financial Times 'How to Spend It' Superior Interiors 2014 Financial Times 'How to Spend It' The Bespokesperson 2015 Financial Times 'How to Spend It' Artistic Storage 2015 Modern Magazine, Gray Today by Jennifer Goff 2015 PORTFOLIO: Critical Selection 2015-2016 2016 THE IRISH TIMES: The Kimono Way 2016 Financial Times, 'How to Spend It', Ireland of Plenty 2016 Financial Times, 'How to Spend It”, Raising the Bar 2017 PORTFOLIO: Critical Selection 2017-2018 2017 Financial Times, 'How to Spend It”, Superior Interiors: Leaving the Sidelines 2017 The Mayfair Magazine: Into the Woods 2017 The Kensington & Chelsea Magazine: Into the Woods 2017 The Notting Hill & Holland Park Magazine: Into the Woods 2017 The Marylebone & Fitzrovia Magazine: Into the Woods 2018 Financial Times, 'How to Spend It”, Puttin on the Glitz 2019 Robb Report, Ultimate Gift Guide 2019 Sphere Magazine, Influencer 2019 PORTFOLIO: Critical Selection 2019-2020
