Terence Woodgate on upcoming exhibition, Lightness of Form

Recently, New Wave sat down with Terence Woodgate to discuss his upcoming exhibition Lightness of Form. Most striking was how his calm, precise tone mirrored the minimalism that defines his work.

Opening soon at Carpenters Workshop Gallery in London, the exhibition showcases his collaboration with John Barnard, the legendary Formula One engineer who remodelled the sport with the first carbon-fibre body structure, the paddle-shift gearbox, and countless other innovations that shaped the modern Grand Prix car.

Woodgate explained that the exhibition is showing five prototypes produced for the gallery: a table, a desk, a chair, a chaise longue, and hopefully a cabinet that was still being finished in Belgium. “It’s been brilliant working with John Barnard,” he said. “Honestly, there aren’t many people in the world who know more about carbon fibre than John. We’ve been working together for some years now, since I became a Royal Designer for Industry here in the UK. And in this project, we’re using recycled carbon fibre, which is fascinating as a material.”

Carbon fibre, most often associated with Formula 1 and aerospace, takes on a different life in Woodgate’s studio. He smiled as he described its origins: “The material itself starts as fabric, and that’s the part most people don’t realize. Racing cars are literally made out of fabric. Carbon fibre begins as woven cloth, just like the T-shirt you’re wearing, but made with super-fine carbon filaments. It’s then impregnated with resin and cured in an autoclave. The result is this rock-hard, rigid material. When I first worked with John, I couldn’t believe it: every racing car is made from fabric. It’s the same process as tailoring a dress, cut patterns, joining them, and building a 3D form. But instead of cotton, you’re weaving carbon filaments.

“In aerospace or Formula 1, carbon fibre is used mainly to save weight. We’re not chasing weight; we’re chasing form. I want it to look incredibly light, minimal, and beautiful, almost as if it shouldn’t be able to do what it does, and yet it’s strong enough to hold.”

That pursuit of beauty is not a secondary concern for Woodgate, but the core of his philosophy. “For me, aesthetics always come first,” he explained. “The piece must be beautiful. The structure is carbon fibre, there’s no hidden metal framework. Just like in an F1 car or a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, the skin is the structure. Of course, functionality matters, it must work as a table, a chair, or a chaise, but these pieces are foremost works of art. They’re meant to be collectible, sculptural, and desirable.”

Unlike in racing, where instinct battles with data, Woodgate insists that in his practice there is no such tension. “Honestly, no. It’s selfish, I design for myself. It has to please me first. If others like it, fantastic. If not, that’s fine too. It’s no different from contemporary art, you might look at a piece and think, Wow, this is incredible, while your friend thinks it’s horrible.

Design is subjective. My parents, for example, wouldn’t like my work. It’s not decorative enough for their taste. But for me, influenced by artists like Donald Judd, Carl Andre, Michael Craig-Martin, it feels just right.”

Where others talk about sustainability through recycling, Woodgate looks to longevity. “I design for longevity, absolutely,” he said firmly. “I don’t believe recycling alone is sustainable, the most sustainable thing is to create something people will keep and cherish for decades. Think about Porsche 911s: most of them are still on the road. Nobody scraps them. You repair, maintain, and treasure them. That’s how I see these pieces: they’re designed to be around a very, very long time.”

And like Formula 1, his process is one of constant iteration. “It’s about constant improvement. You never stop. Every piece is like a prototype, sometimes you get it right, sometimes not. In F1, teams celebrate a win for a day, then start designing next year’s car. With design, my focus is on art, longevity, and beauty. Perfection is never fully reached, but you keep pushing.”

His collaboration with Barnard reflects this balance of art and engineering. “We bounce ideas back and forth,” he explained. “I create the sketches and drawings, I shape the artistic vision. John brings his engineering expertise, ensuring the structure works and is optimized. So my role is the art and design direction, his role is the engineering and technical innovation. It’s a true collaboration: design meets engineering.”

Woodgate is candid about the role of failure in shaping his work. He recalled a moment when he had machined and painted a model of a low voltage spotlight for a client. “As I walked out of the workshop, I accidentally dropped the model. Picking up the parts I realised that it made more sense for the design to be modular. The modular design went on to win the Red Dot ‘Best of the Best’ award and the Design Council British Design Award.”

This humility runs through his reflections on how people live with his designs. “For me there is nothing more inspiring than someone buying my work. That is the ultimate endorsement. I hope the pleasure of using it lasts forever. Longevity is more important than recycling. The bigger the circle in the circular economy the better.”

If racing is defined by speed, Woodgate sees value in slowness. “I am in no rush, which is luxury,” he said. “Sometimes it helps to be able to walk away from the design and come back to it at a later date with fresh eyes. Quality over speed. Each prototype is an improvement on the last. Only the creator knows when the work is ready to be released to the world.”

On the future of design, he resists certainty: “The only thing certain in predicting the future is that you will be wrong! I guess that bioengineering will play a major role.”

And when asked what unexpected sources fuel his creativity beyond architecture and design, his answer was simple: “People. People always amaze me. Their resilience, their ingenuity. Their ability to create and to stand on the shoulders of those who have gone before. To overcome adversity. To love. You can learn something from everyone and never underestimate anyone.”

As our talk came to an end, Woodgate said something that could serve as an apt conclusion for his career: "That I was curious, alert, and never stopped learning and perfecting my craft."