Sean Mannix
Artist/Designer
STATEMENT
While much of the work that happens in the studio is commissioned design and build work, I have been exploring upon a interesting thread that I unexpectedly found running back through my sketches over the past 40 years. Fabrication of dimensional pieces, some free form, some functional, that survey an Architectonic foundation while expressing an organic geometry. At times brutalist, at times delicate. Finding the purity in line, plane and form geometry intersections is an interesting challenge and often counterintuitive to the formal process of design thinking and making.
BIOGRAPHY
Sean Mannix owns his own design and fabrication studio focusing on wood and metalwork.
A master craftsman as well as an avid restorer, Sean has an extensive knowledge (and archive) of historical fixtures and hardware. He works with architects, builders, and homeowners to create ornamental metalwork, such as staircases and fireplace surrounds, hardware, and lighting. Mannix designs unique furniture and home accessories, often mixing reclaimed metal and wood together, integrating the mastery of materials and engineering with a keen artistic eye.
His corporate design projects include athletic footwear for Prince and Benetton, surgical instruments, and neonatal incubators, along with trade show exhibits.
In 2007, Mannix bought an established 11,000 sq/ft artists’ community now known as Highland Design Farm, a three-building complex that houses the studios of several diverse artists, including Mannix’s own 3,500-sq. ft. fabrication shop.
Sean is committed to supporting fellow artists in the area. He cofounded the Hopewell Tour des Arts, an annual self-guided tour through the galleries and studios of working artists in and around Hopewell.
Sean Mannix studied Industrial Design and Architecture at Philadelphia College of Art.
