Emilio Ambasz was born in Argentina in 1943, but he obtained Spanish nationalisation years later. He took his architectural studies at Princeton University. Between 1970 and 1976 he work at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) New York, where he designed many exhibitions on architecture and industrial design, such as Italy: the new domestic landscape (1972), The architecture of Luis Barragán (1974) or The Taxi Project (1976).
Some of his main architectural projects are: Fukuoka Prefectural International Hall and the Mycal Cultural Center in Shin-Sanda, both in Japan; the Museum of American Folk Art in New York; the Lucille Halsall Conservatory at San Antonio Botanical Center, the
Monument Towers in Phoenix and the Grand Rapids Art Museum in Michigan, all in the United States. Many of these designs have been awarded in important festivals worldwide.
Ambasz has also many patents in mechanical and industrial design. His most recognised works are the Vertebra, Qualis and Stacker chair models; the Polyphemus lantern; the three-dimensional poster of Geigy Graphics; the innovative urban lighting Saturn; his N14 diesel motor design or the Logotec and Oseris spotlight lines.
Author of several books on architecture and design, his work has been object of many retrospectives and exhibitions, such as those organised in 1989 and 2006 at MoMA New York; in 1989 at San Diego Museum of Contemporary Art or in 1993 at the Tokyo Station Gallery Japan. Furthermore, his designs, such as the Vertebra chair, are part some important collections, such as the MoMA or the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art in New York.
