Today we’d like to introduce you to Taidgh O’Neill.
Hi Taidgh, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My furniture practice is really the combination of what I did to make a living since graduating high school (construction) and what I knew what I wanted to be since childhood (an artist). I paid my way through UCLA working as a carpenter. My focus of study was fine art. When I graduated from university, I started a historic restoration company tending to Los Angeles’ craftsman and Victorian homes. In the early days, I rented out a two car garage that I used as a shop to explore my own furniture designs after hours. Gradually this started to replace the construction as a way to make a living. Now I have multiple designs licensed by European manufacturers and make bespoke pieces for design collectors, and I operate out of a much larger studio in downtown LA.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It has not been a smooth road, but I have been graced with strokes of luck and myriad encouraging moments that kept me going. Throughout the 10+ years, I’ve been developing my practice, I had two children, severely broke a foot, remodeled two homes and sweated constantly over making ends meet. That last part has been the hardest. Making weird furniture in an expensive city is not the most advisable thing to do if money is a main concern. But I grew up pretty broke and scrappy so I’ve been able to manage. Still a struggle, and I’m still figuring things out, but the fact is there isn’t anything else I’d rather be doing.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I design and create contemporary furniture. My main medium is solid hardwood. My best selling pieces are the shelves from my Boyle Height series–each one is different from the next and are intuitively composed, almost in an abstract-expressionist approach. It was the first series I did when I began making furniture, and they were born out of my fascination with ad hoc residential renovations found in Los Angeles. I describe them as looking broken but stable. I’m most proud of being able to be true to my distinct vision while simultaneously being a good father and husband.
What does success mean to you?
Success for me is not compromising in my aesthetic and being stable enough to balance work and family obligations. Money is obviously crucial, but leisure, personal satisfaction and a happy home is more important to me.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@taidghoneilldesign.com
- Website: taidghoneilldesign.com
- Instagram: @taidghoneilldesign
Image Credits
Portrait in studio: Marcia Prentice All product photographs: Mark Dadlani
