Pete Sans

Pete Sans (born 1947) is a Barcelona-based designer whose early life was shaped by Catalan artistic and intellectual circles. He began in graphic and textile design, then travelled to Germany to deepen his training in industrial design. On returning to Barcelona in 1971, he opened his own graphic design studio and took over the Gallery and School Nikon. Around the same period he also published the art magazine Special Paper, noted for its concepts, content, and graphic quality in social communication.

In the late 1970s Sans began working with Snark Design, a collaboration that led to the creation of Lamparaprima, later recognised at the International Moving Fair of Paris in 1983. From there he focused his practice on industrial design, which he has described as “industrial sculpture”, producing work defined by a personal, inventive approach to form and function. His wider output includes the Coqueta chair, which received the Golden Delta Award in 1988, and he was commissioned to design furniture for the French Institute of Barcelona in 1990. In 1994 he founded his own producing company, PeteSans Sistemes Integrals, S.L., launching the Sistema Aula range of office tables as its first product.