Ambra Medda

In 2005, Medda co-founded Design Miami, along with real estate developer Craig Robins, and was also the fair's director until 2010.[3][4][5][6][7] The annual event, which is considered to be "one of the most influential design fairs in the world",[8] first began as a salon for Italian design.[9] A sister show, called Design Miami Basel, was launched in Switzerland and is also held yearly.[3] As director, Medda created partnerships with notable galleries, collectors and companies, bringing together the international design community.[10][6] After stepping down, she continued to sit on committees and acted as a creative consultant for the fair.[10]

In 2013, Medda co-founded an e-commerce design website named L’ArcoBaleno, meaning "rainbow" in Italian.[11][4][9][7] The site included collaborations with David Adjaye, Tom Dixon and Reed Krakoff.[9][12] In 2015, Medda became Global Creative Director of the "20/21 Design" department at Christie's.[11][4] Her department focused on auctioning design objects, such as furniture and lighting, from the 20th and 21st century.[11][4] In 2016, she founded Ambra Medda Office (AMO), a design consultancy firm where she advises clients like Airbnb and Louis Vuitton.[13][14][15] Medda is also involved with the Design Museum in London as a trustee and committee member.[13][16]

Medda's other projects include curating an exhibit for Madrid artist José María Cano in 2004.[17][18] In 2008, she authored the book "Destination: Limited-Edition Design", which examined the top exhibition places in the world.[19][20] In 2009, she collaborated with Fendi, bringing together designers for the project Craft Punk.[21] She also helped design a 2014 collection of handbags for the Roger Vivier brand and was featured in its ad campaign.[22][23][24] In 2018, Medda organized visits to the Villa Borsani, designed by Osvaldo Borsani, for the Milan Furniture Fair in Italy.[25][26][27][28]

Medda has been described as being an "icon of the style" by the French magazine Madame Figaro.[7] She has stated that "putting the historic and the contemporary together brings out the best in both".[21] By mixing the old and new, her design aesthetic has been interpreted as creating tension with unexpected combinations.[21] Medda also came up with the phrase "designers are the new rock stars".[29][30]

Medda was born in Greece, to a Sardinian mother and Austrian father, and later lived in London and Milan.[9][21][31][7] Growing up she attended auctions with her mother, who was a design dealer and co-founder of the Themes and Variations gallery in London.[32][30] She studied "Chinese Language and Culture", as well as "Asian Art", at London University[33][30] Medda was previously married to American singer Damian Kulash.[34][6] She currently lives in London with Edward Barber and they have two children.[31]

• http://www.crane.tv/ambra-medda