Full Grown

Full Grown have been acquired by San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh, Rotterdam Museum Boijmans van Beuningen and Manchester Metropolitan University. Exhibition highlights include the UK Pavilion at the Beijing Horticultural Expo, St Etienne Design Biennale, display of the Edwardes Chair in Milan, with the Masterly Milano Dutch Pavilion, as well as partnering with Louis Vuitton for their Chelsea in Bloom presentation in New York. Their work has been covered by The Guardian, Vice, Design Week, Architectural Digest, International Business Times, MIT Technology Review among others.

Perhaps best described as botanical craftsmen, Full Grown employ ancient techniques to grow their tree-chairs, manipulating a bough’s directions of growth through custom frames and grafting together new furniture forms in the live tree. They integrate the artistic and romantic into the scientific, and urge us to reconsider the way we produce our everyday objects. These carbon sink grown sculptures are functional, beautiful objets d’art.

“Sometimes you see a collection which makes you feel like there is hope for the world. Full Grown has that collection. Made with so much love and knowledge about nature. An asset to the world.”

- Nicole Uniquole, Curator Dutch Pavilion, Salone del Mobile, Milano 2018

The first seed of Full Grown was sown when as a young boy playing in the garden, Gavin noticed an overgrown bonsai tree had the distinct appearance of a chair. It was an image that stayed in his mind for 25 years. After studying Art at Chesterfield, Furniture Design at Leeds Becket University and a stint with a London Design Studio, Gavin worked as an apprentice to a traditional cabinet-maker before travelling to Scotland to build a replica Saxon Barn and after this, to California to build eco-houses and furniture using sustainable materials. Gavin founded Full Grown during 2006 and has built the business from scratch. His invaluable experience over the past 12 years has made him a leading expert in the expanding field of bio-design, developing new techniques and experimental approaches. Gavin runs Full Grown with Alice Munro.