Piet Hein Eek (1967) graduated in 1990 from the Design Academy in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, with his now classic Cupboard in Scrapwood. In 1992, together with Nob Ruijgrok, he founded Eek & Ruijgrok B.V. and opened a factory in Geldrop, while using his own name for the brand. For Eek it is important to have influence on the whole process - from drawing until final product - and over the years this proved to be an exceptional way of producing that became recognized internationally as it was and is still rare that furniture is designed and produced under the same roof. Each design of Eek is designed with the material, the fabrication technique and the craft as main focus and these three components can be found in each and every design.
In 2010 Eek moved his business to Eindhoven, in a former Philips factory of 11.000 m2. Since then he expanded his interests and company to other disciplines. The building houses a restaurant, a showroom, a shop that sells Eek’s designs as well as other products, an art gallery and an event hall where concerts and comedy nights are held, open to the public. With all this, Eek created his own world and an important cultural hub in the city of Eindhoven, at times where such initiatives are scarce or have difficulty with keeping their heads above water.
Eek produces between 15 and 30 new designs each year as well as running about 10 interior design projects. Over the years more than 150 national and international magazines published articles about his work and it is difficult to keep up with all the online publications. He won numerous awards and his designs are part of several museum collections but for him it is not important to mention in this description what awards or which museums.
