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How Muller Van Severen Built One of Today’s Most Influential Furniture Studios
Fien Muller and Hannes Van Severen began working together in 2011, bringing two independent artistic backgrounds into a shared studio. Fien trained as a photographer, developing a precise understanding of composition, surface, and colour, while Hannes studied sculpture and focused on spatial structure and the behaviour of materials in three dimensions. The partnership formed through ongoing conversations about objects and through a gradual interest in how furniture could serve as a direct extension of their artistic processes.
ALLTUBES Bench by Muller Van Severen, part of the ALLTUBES series
(c) Muller Van Severen
ALLTUBES Cabinet High + Chair 2 by Muller Van Severen
(c) Muller Van Severen
Detail of the ALLTUBES Wall Cabinet L by Muller Van Severen
(c) Muller Van Severen
The development of each piece begins with material examination and simple construction tests. Metal rods are bent or joined to explore tension, leather is suspended to understand curvature, and polyethylene sheets are evaluated for their stability and chromatic presence. Decisions emerge from these practical studies rather than from conceptual narratives. Lines, joints, and surfaces remain visible because every part of the object reflects the steps that shaped it. This approach creates furniture that carries the clarity of studio experimentation without decorative additions or concealed elements.
Colour selection follows the same principle of directness. Polyethylene retains the industrial tones originally used for classification in food-processing environments; metals age at their natural pace; leather develops patina through use. These properties guide the design process and influence the proportions and combinations of materials. Instead of treating colour as a secondary layer, the duo integrates it at the earliest phase of development, allowing it to act as a structural element within the work.
Diversity within their oeuvre arises from the range of functional questions they address. Seating pieces examine how minimal surfaces can maintain comfort through tension alone. Tables often incorporate lighting, creating merged objects that organise spatial arrangements through a single construction. Shelving systems explore vertical extension and load distribution, while carpets translate the duo’s sense of balance into textile form. Variations come from the specific technical requirements of each task, not from shifts in style. The relationship between Fien and Hannes remains central to the evolution of their work. Drawings, scale models, and continuous dialogue form the basis of their process, with both artists contributing to each stage until a coherent solution emerges. The studio functions as a place for daily testing and refinement, and this environment shapes the calm, straightforward presence found in their finished pieces.
Daybed designed by Muller Van Severen for Kvadrat’s “Divina: Every Color Is Divine” exhibition, 2014
(c) Muller Van Severen
Hannes Van Severen + Fien Muller
Muller Van Severen
A recent development in their practice is the opening of a dedicated showroom near Ghent, accessible by appointment. This space allows architects, collectors, and design professionals to encounter the work in a precise and controlled setting. The showroom presents their furniture in a scale and context aligned with its intended use, giving visitors the opportunity to study materials, proportions, and constructions directly. This addition extends the studio’s reach without altering its foundational methods, and it offers a clear view of the ongoing investigations that anchor their work.
Bridges cabinet series by Muller Van Severen for BD Barcelona
(c) Muller Van Severen
Collaborations with production partners, including long-term work with valerie_objects, extend their designs into international contexts while preserving the essential principles of the studio. Manufacturers follow material guidelines that reflect the duo’s priorities: clearly defined geometries, unaltered surfaces, and structural transparency. These partnerships allow the work to circulate more widely without shifting the foundation of the practice.
Muller Van Severen continues to build a body of furniture that reflects an uninterrupted engagement with material behaviour, proportion, and the practical demands of construction. Every object contributes to an ongoing exploration of how form and function can be approached with artistic precision, and the resulting work introduces a steady presence to interiors through disciplined use of colour, material, and structure.
Duo Seat + Lamp by Muller Van Severen, presented at Design Brussels in 2011
(c) Muller Van Severen
Pillow Sofa designed by Muller Van Severen, created with KASSL Editions and reimagined by BD Barcelona
(c) Muller Van Severen
header image credit
Crossed Double Seat (2012), designed by Muller Van Severen for the Future Primitives series at Biennale Interieur
(c) Muller Van Severen