As we all know, Australia is home to many excellent industrial designers and makers, who lead the world with their innovative and bespoke work. Ash Allen fits the mould perfectly.
Allen began his career studying design at RMIT University in 2014, after completing a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and Arts at the University of Melbourne and an M.B.A. from La Trobe University. After study, he joined the family rubber manufacturing business as General Manager from 1999 to 2021. This was his ‘day job’ but over the years he pursed design in his spare time in his home studio.
His design trajectory began in the final years at RMIT University when he conceived and designed three outstanding products. The first was Sticks and Stone, a table and stool setting, inspired by smooth skipping stones and Japanese rock gardens. The table and stool tops incorporated recycled rubber crumb, as he envisaged a way to use the material and give it new life.
“I was running a rubber factory at the time, and as students we were taught all about sustainability,” explains Allen. “I had access to this recycled material and I wondered, how could I use it? I created a gypsum-based composite that looked like a stone when I sanded it back. Once sealed, it provided a hard flat textured surface, becoming the top of the stool and table.”
Next came the Dollop pendant. The perfectly balanced, asymmetric form of this ceramic light is the very vision of a spoonful of cream falling gently off a spoon. It caused a sensation, winning awards in Australia at the Edge Design Competition, also in London and then at the 2015 Salone del Mobile Milano.
Lionheart Stool followed, the design a result of playing with curved folds in card. After many iterations, the final design was realised using expanded steel mesh, where the material for three stools are cut from a single sheet. The stool is not welded, instead the metal is hemmed, folded and ‘buttoned’ together to achieve its elegant angular yet curved form.
While the materiality of Allen’s first projects are evident, the constant throughout is organic forms and a desire to re-use and repurpose what would normally be considered waste. It is as if the material Allen chooses informs the design, instead of the design requiring a particular material.
What is interesting about Ash Allen is the evolution of his work. He restlessly seeks a purpose and narrative and moves fluidly between furniture, lighting and accessories.
In 2019, Allen began experimenting with steel weldmesh, a utilitarian material. He has since re-imagined it in the form of chairs, lighting and handbags (yes handbags) under the Overt brand. Watch out Prada, Ash Allen’s handbags are attracting attention and sales!
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Through Overt, Allen is endeavouring to create a degree of separation for his steel mesh work and create an online store for these bespoke, one-off pieces.
However, the real interest in weldmesh began during Covid when Allen had access to the material and was learning to weld. “I started playing with the material — folding, stretching and curving it — and it went from there”.
Initially, Allen’s idea was to create outdoor furniture which could facilitate the growth of slow-growing vines. The first piece created was Thonet’s Chair 14. Since then and over many years, he has realised that curvaceous, monocoque forms work best with the material and this has culminated in the design of the Beanless Bag realised in 2025.
The Beanless Bag is the epitome of out-of-the-box thinking and has already garnered awards such as the prestigious biennial Clarence Prize in 2025. As the name would suggest there are no beans, just the recognisable form of a classic beanbag. However, instead of an opaque indoor sack, Beanless is translucent, outdoor-ready and already an heirloom piece that is currently available in five bold powdercoat colours.
For Melbourne Design Week (MDW) this year, the Beanless Bag was on display at Abbotsford Convent, along with other bespoke pieces made especially for the event. For MDW, Allen paid homage to three exceptional Australian women designers, re-creating three of their iconic designs in steel mesh in the Lines of Force exhibition. On display were interpretations of Simone LeAmon’s Lepidoptera chair, Laura McCusker’s I-Bench and Helen Kontouris’ 101 chair.
With the explicit permission of these designers, Allen re-imagined their classic pieces, endeavouring to put these designers and their great work in the spotlight. A history lesson of sorts, he learned and connected with the designers during the process.
With every furniture, light or accessory made, Allen understands more about the material — which grade of steel to use, how to colour it and the nuances of fabrication. He says that steel weldmesh is a strong, lightweight and forgiving material to work with and is surprised by its malleability and the patterns it creates. It also affords a certain aesthetic for Allen and makes his work instantly recognisable.
Because of the material’s outdoor credentials, he is exploring the domain of public art. His first commission, a sculpture, will be installed in mid-June in the foyer of Greensborough’s multi-activity facility WaterMarc Banyule.
“I enjoy the whole process of the design — from the initial idea, the concept drawings, the scale mock-ups, the improvements and then of course the realisation of the final product,” says Allen.
Allen is humble and funny and his passion for design is palpable. But most of all he is supremely talented. Many of his designs — whether a light, a stool, a table or a chair — have been recognised with awards.
As a quiet design achiever, he doesn’t make a noise about his accomplishments, but his objects speak vociferously of great design, sustainability and longevity.
Ash Allen is a designer-maker par excellence and, lucky for us, he is another fabulous Australian talent who is making his mark on the landscape of global design.
