Rio Kobayashi
Rio Kobayashi is a maker and designer based in London. He unites creativity in thinking with excellence in hand-crafts.
Kobayashi was born and grew up in Tochigi Prefecture Japan in a ceramic artisan family. He was a creative mind from the start and created his first piece of furniture at an early age. At eighteen he left Japan for Austria, where he developed and honed his skills in carpentry over the course of a three-year apprenticeship in traditional cabinet making.
From 2011 on he gained experience working with international studios and artists in Milan, Tokyo, Paris and Berlin, where he started his own business two years later. In 2017 Kobayashi set up his own workshop in East London. He has since exhibited under his own name at the London Design Festival and Milan Design Week, as well as having his pieces shown in group shows at several galleries in Europe.
Kobayashi’s work is broad in scope, yet precise in its execution. His pieces open playful dialogues between the traditional crafts of his native Japan, remaining a strong influence throughout his work, and the boundaryless creative freedoms of the modern design world he inhabits. Having lived in many different countries and being raised by Japanese and Austrian-Italian parents, he always belonged both to many places and to none. With attention, humour, and a deep understanding of the elements of the cultures that surround him, Kobayashi positions himself in the world by making pieces that explore his identity and heritage.