Bethan Laura Wood

Bethan Laura Wood is an internationally recognised English designer of jewellery, furniture, decorative objects, lighting and installations. She has designed for media such as glass, laminates wood veneer and ceramics. Work produced by her studio, WOOD London, is characterised by colour, geometry and visual metaphor, pattern and marquetry. She has been described as "... elements from everyday objects, often focusing on the pattern and coloration of objects as indicators of their origins, production, and past usage."

Early life and education

Wood was born in 1983 and grew up in Shropshire.
She was diagnosed with dyslexia at sixth-form college. She studied 3D design at Brighton University, then studied at the Royal College of Art in 2007, tutored by Dutch designer Jurgen Bey and the Italian Martino Gamper. While still a student, she founded her studio, "WOOD London", in 2009.

Career

Wood has been commissioned by a variety of international companies to create works and installations, including Abet Laminati, Moroso, Valextra, Perrier Jouët, Bitossi Ceramiche, Tory Burch, cc-tapis, Tolix Rosenthal and Hermés.
Her work has been exhibited at the V&A Museum of Childhood, Swiss Institute Contemporary Art New York, Daelim Museum and Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo. She was a designer in residence at the London Design Museum.
Wood was named in the 20019 Wallpaper* Power 200, which ranks her "among the world's pre-eminent design talent".
In February 2025, the Design Museum in London launched a new initiative called PLATFORM, "an annual display dedicated to showcasing contemporary design practice", the inaugural edition focusing on Wood's work and career.
In 2025, Wood was invited to Japan to take part in the Tokai Project, the second edition of the Craft x Tech initiative. The programme is an exploration of how traditional "aesthetic sensibilities embedded in Japanese craft can be reimagined through a thoughtful and skillful creative process" reinterpreted through the lens of contemporary design and technology.

Awards

Year	Award	Category	Piece	Result
2019	German Design Awards	Outstanding Product	Tongue with Rosenthal	Won
2019	The Design Museum	Beazley Designs of the Year	Super Fake with CC-Tapis
2019	EDIDA Design Awards	Floor Covering	Super Fake with CC-Tapis	Won
2019	The ELLE Decoration British Design Awards	Floor Covering		Won
2019	The ELLE Decoration Japan EDIDA Design Award	Floor Covering		Won
2017	The Design Prize	Artist Realm
2016	London Design Festival, London Design Medal	British Land Swarovski Emerging Talent Medal		Won
2016	Hublot Design Prize
2013	Design Miami	Designer of the Future		Won
2013	W Hotels Designers of the Future Award	Making Connections		-
2012	The Design Museum	Design of the Year – Furniture	Moon Rock
2012	The Design Museum	Design of the Year – Furniture	Moon Rock

Accolades

2025 – MECCA flagship acquisition commission – Criss Cross Kite Grande Dame chandelier
2023 – National Galley of Victoria NGV x MECCA Women in Design Commission – Kaleidoscope-o-Rama bookcase and Carpet
2021 – Bitossi Museum – permanent collection – Guadalupe Vase & drawings
2021 – The Art Institute of Chicago, acquired for Permanent Collection – Stain willow pattern
2021 – San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Accessions Committee Fund Purchase criss cross Kite
2020 – V & A – Toothpaste bag designed for Valextra.
2019 – The Welcome Collection, Being Human – permanent gallery – commissioned project Epidemic Jukebox
2019 – Judge for 2019 Dezeen Awards.
2013 – Abet Museum – Play time table purchased for permanent collection.
2012 – MUDAC – Totem no.5 purchased for permanent collection.
2012 – One of 850 alumni invited to Diamond jubilee Royal academy of Arts Gala in attendants of the Queen.

Select exhibitions

2011 – Nilufar gallery during Salone del Mobile with pieces such as Totem, a lighting collection made from Pyrex in collaboration with master glass-blower Pietro Viero.
2013 – Aram Gallery – Solo show.
2014 – Kvadvat – Divina celebration exhibition, Milan Salone – Guadalupe Daybed
2015 – Nilufar Gallery – Milan Salone exhibition – Temple Collection
2015 – Tory Burch and Wallpaper*magazine – Touring Installation – Milan, Munich, New York – Canapé
2016 – Designjunction – Dyslexic Design.
2016 – Nilufar Gallery – Salone Milan – CrissCross, Hula and Melon Tables
2016: The British Land Celebration of Design awards exhibition in Broadgate, London.
2016: Friends + Design, SKD Museum, Dresden
2018 – Aram Gallery – Designers select designers.
2017 – Bijenkorf and Rijksmuseum Museum – Room on the Roof Residency Amsterdam – Afterparty Sweet Dreams in collaboration with the TextielMuseum, Tilburg
2017 – Nilufar Gallery – Salone Milan – Trellis Collection
2017 – G.F.Smith paper – Hull City of Culture – Seaweed kites installation
2017 – Peter Pilotto – London Fashion week Commission Ready-to-Wear A/W 2017 Townhouse installation – Sputnik floor lamps
2018 – Perrier-Jouët Champagne Collectors’ Lounge, Design Miami – Scenography – HyperNature Landscape
2018 – Designart Tokyo Festival – Perrier-Jouët Champagne – Commission – HyperNature Sculpture
2018 – Moroso – Milan Showroom solo installation for Salone – Mono Mania Mexico
2018 – CC-Tapis – Rug Collection – Super Fake
2018 – Valextra – SS18 collection installation – Toothpaste
2018 – Perrier-Jouët Champagne Terrace Masterpiece – Scenography – HyperNature herbarium
2019 – Solo Exhibition inaugurating new Nilufar 25 Exhibition Space, Milan – Details.
2020 – V & A museum London – Exhibition Bags: Inside Out – Toothpaste bag
2021 – Dior, Miss Dior 12 women artists exhibition – Flower Folly traveling exhibition
2021 – Nilufar Gallery, Solo Show – Ornate – celebrating 10 years of collaboration with Nilufar Gallery – Ornate, Meisen, BonBon and Aperitivo.
2021 – Dubai design week – Women in Design – Exhibition – Super Fake Rugs & Guest Speaker
2022 – Nilufar Gallery, A summer Room – new works – Endless Meisen, Trellis column, totem no.11.
2022 – San Francisco Museum of Modern Art – Convesation Pieces – Exhibition – Criss Cross Kite chandelier
2022 – The Drawing Center NY – The Clamor of the Ornament – Sketchbooks, Toothpaste handbags
2022 – Nicoletta Fiorucci Foundation Group show – Collaboration with Jochen Holz – Martino and Friends – Our Lady of Guadalope
2022 – PAD london – Nilufar Gallery – Meisen Caterpillar
2023 – National Galley of Victoria NGV x MECCA Women in Design Commission – Kaleidoscope-o-Rama bookcase and Carpet
2024 – Nicoletta Fiorucci Foundation Travelling Bluestocking Salon – Mother Tongue Presented by Nicoletta Fiorucci
2024 – cc-tapis Headquarters – Travelling Bluestocking Salon – Salon Talk and installation
2024 – Vitra Haus Home sweet home – Group Bird house exhibition – Paradise Perch
2024 – Nuovo gallery – Solo Exhibition As seem Though the lens of Nilufar and cc-tapis – Multiple Furniture, lighting and carpets pieces
2025: Platform, Design Museum, London
2025 – Byredo Takeover – , THE KIOSK, THE CARGO BIKE, BYREDO MILAN FLAGSHIP
2025 -Triennale Milano 24th International Exhibition, titled Inequalities – group show – Olive Mirror

Collections

Wood's works can be found in the permanent collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Wellcome Collection in London and the Abet Laminate Museum in Italy.