Sam Jacob
Design
Sam Jacob is the principal of Sam Jacob Studio, a practice which produces work including urban design, architecture, art and curation.
Jacob is interested in the ways architecture and design make ideas real – socially, formally and materially. From nightclubs to social housing, community centres to exhibitions, his projects are striking yet are full of familiar references, creating places and spaces with character and surprising beauty. Inspired by context, his projects try to embody stories, sensations and feelings in space, form and materials.
Jacob’s work has been shown at institutions including The Art Institute Chicago, The MAK Vienna, The V&A, and The Venice Biennale, where he was co-curator of the 2016 British Pavilion. Jacob has worked with museums including The Design Museum, The Science Museum, Tate Modern and MK Gallery, and has contributed to events including The London Design Festival, The Chicago Architecture Biennial and The Lisbon Triennale. Previously, Jacob was a director of FAT Architecture.
Recent projects include a new mixed-use building in Hoxton offices for Art Review, exhibition designs for Somerset House, and the refurbishment of the V&A’s Cromwell Road entrance. Current projects include the Science Museum’s Collection Centre, public spaces in Belgravia and Covent Garden, as well as light industrial buildings in Lovelands, Colorado.
Alongside the studio’s main work, Jacobs has created t-shirts and scarves that act as manifestos, designed an opera in a cow shed, and interviewed Lou Reed, all in the name of expanding the possibilities of architectural production.
Selected Projects
2022
Yinka Ilori Studio, workspace, London, UK.
Transformation of V&A Cromwell Road Entrance, Victoria and Albert Museum, London, UK.
NCC Welcome Building.
The Horror Show, Somerset House, London, UK.
London Design Festival, London, UK.
2021
Building ONE, Science Museum Collections Centre, UK.
Mixed Use Building, Hoxton, London, UK.
‘In Search of Sharawadgi’, Exhibition Design, curation and art direction, Heerlen, Netherlands.
‘Beano: Art of Breaking the Rules’, Exhibition Design, Somerset House, London, UK
2020
Pavilions within the historic landscape of Stowe, Stowe, UK.
‘The Electric Nemeton’, installation, London, UK.
Offices for Art Review, London, UK.
Kingly Court Phase 2, Carnaby Street, London, UK.
Public WC and Public realm improvements, Carnaby Street, London, UK.
2019
‘DKUK 2’, Gallery & Hair Salon, London, UK.
‘Lie of the Land’, MK Gallery, Milton Keynes, UK.
Cartoon Museum, London, UK.
An Office of Stacked Things, London, UK.
2018
Dido & Aeneas, Staging Design, Shatwell Opera, Somerset, UK.
Ideas Depot, Exhibition Design, Tate Liverpool, Liverpool, UK.
‘The Sun: Living With Our Star’, Exhibition Design, Science Museum, London, UK.
2017
V&A Shekou, Exhibition Design, Shenzhen, China
‘The Stack for Mini Living’, London Design Festival Landmark Project, London, UK.
‘DKUK’, Gallery & Salon, London, UK.
2016
‘Illuminated River’, Shortlisted, International Design Competition.
Surrey Street Market, Urban Design, London, UK.
‘Fear And Love’, Exhibition Design, Design Museum, London, UK.
‘One Thing After Another’, Installation, Sto Werkstatt, London, UK.
‘Dar Abu Said’, Installation, Venice Architecture Biennale, Italy.
2015
‘MK Menhir’, Public Art, Milton Keynes, UK.
Shortlisted team, VPAC Arts Complex, Chicago, US.
‘Architecture Curator’, ArDe, London, UK.
‘V&A East’, Brief & Concept Development, London, UK.
‘Cambourne Pavilion’, South Cambs, UK.
‘MK Menhier’, Public Art Commission, Milton Keynes, UK.
Selected Solo Exhibitions
2019
‘Empire of Ice Cream’, Betts Project, London, UK.
2018
‘The Lie of The Land’, MK Gallery, Milton Keynes, UK.
‘Disappear Here’, Architecture Gallery, RIBA, London, UK.
2015
‘A Clockwork Jerusalem’, AA Gallery, London, UK.
2014
‘A Clockwork Jerusalem’, British Pavilion, 14th Venice Architecture Biennale, British Pavilion, Venice Biennale, Italy.
Selected Group Exhibitions
2022
‘Hand and Machine’, National Museum, Oslo, Norway.
2021
‘Namely Words’, Betts Projects, London, UK.
2020
‘Earth Drawings’, Architectural Association, London, UK.
