History
2010
Dinosaur Designs loaned products for the Harpers Bazaar fashion show at Melbourne Fashion week.
Dinosaur Designs supported the Sculpture by the Sea Cottlesloe event in Perth with awards and the loan of jewellery for the team.
Dinosaur Designs supported Tropfest with the making of the awards, also presenting the first prize to Abe Forsythe for his film ‘Shock’.
Dinosaur Designs supported the Sydney Festival providing gift packs for the artists.
Dinosaur Designs donated a percentage of sales from the Fungi Collection to the Australian Conservation Foundation for the protection and restoration of the environment through education and research.
2009
Dinosaur included in ‘In Vogue -50 years of Australian Style’ publication that celebrated the 50th anniversary of Vogue Australia.
Dinosaur founders and directors receive 2008 UNSW Alumni Award for outstanding achievements of UNSW alumni in the area of Arts
Dinosaur pieces loaned for the Australian Museum ‘Egyptian Treasures’ Exhibition.
Donation of over $12,000 to the WWF Gouldian Finch Campaign, taken from sales of the Bird Range.
Launch of first Dinosaur viral campaign, inviting you to create your own fungi at www.fungiverse.com
Expansion of 585 Elizabeth Street studio, including addition of a new showroom space.
Launch of first online gift registry at www.dinosaurdesigns.com.au
Opening of ‘Extinct’ sale store at 585 Elizabeth Street.
Dinosaur Designs included in ‘Rug Up’ exhibition at Government House as part of Sydney Design.
Created commissioned pieces for Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas.
Loaned homewares for the Armani Dinner at the Sydney Theatre Company.
Included in the COFA High Achievements publication.
Donated auction items to the Emerald Ball for Westmead Children’s Hospital.
Supported the Marquise/Sydney Children’s Hospital Designer Singlet Collaboration.
Produced NSW Premier's History Awards.
Created the awards for and supported the Sydney Writers Festival 2009.
Dinosaur directors become ‘Mr. & Mrs. Smith Tastemaker’ reviewers of hotels.
Dinosaur Designs supports Earth Hour 2009.
Inclusion in the 20th Anniversary issue of AGIdeas publication.
Creation of Sydney Film Festival Awards, including the ‘Blue Pavlova’ 2009 Film Prize that was awarded to ‘Bronson’
2008
Dinosaur Designs supported The Human Rights Arts and Film Festival December 4th - 7th 2008. Included in Leading Lights Exhibition at Ivan Dougherty Gallery, Paddington November 6 - 29. Dinosaur Designs presents their annual award for an outstanding graduating CoFA student to Ruby Taylor. Presents the award for Best Music to Amanda Brown, and produces the awards for the IF (Independent Film) Awards November 13th. Dinosaur Designs produces the awards for the Australian Ballet Awards November 26. Dancer of the year is Kevin Jackson.
Dinosaur Designs produces the awards for the YEN Woman of the Year Awards. November 25th. Woman of the year award went to Sophie O'Neill. A percentage of proceeds from Bird range goes to the WWF Endangered Gouldian Finch Campaign.
Dinosaur Designs supports the launch of the Sydney Festival. Dinosaur Designs Boulder Rug is listed as a finalist in the Designer Rugs Seidler Award. Dinosaur Designs makes the Bombay Sapphire Designs Discovery Awards. This year the award was presented to Trent Jansen and Ilias Fotopoulos.
Created the annual awards for Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi. Opening October 16th November. Dinosaur Designs makes the awards and VIP pendants for Tropfest NY - the world's largest short film festival. Dinosaur Designs makes the awards for the Walkleys - Young Australian Journalist of the Year. The journalist of the year was Sophie McNeill of SBS TV. Dinosaur Designs included in MADONNA DEL ROSARIO exhibition 10 July - 30 August 2008at Artisan 381 Brunswick Street, Fortitude Valley
The Australians in Film Breakthrough Award made by Dinosaur Designs was presented in Los Angeles honouring Abbie Cornish and Mia Wasikowska.
The Sydney Prize made by Dinosaur Designs at the Sydney Film Festival was awarded to 'The Hunger'. Produced awards for the Sydney Film Festival =, including one nicknamed the ‘Blue Pavlova’. Dinosaur Designs included in FREESTYLE New Australian Design for Living exhibition 10 May - 29 June 2008 La Triennale di Milano Design Museum. Creates special awards and VIP author book marks for the Sydney Writers Festival. Dinosaur Designs included in the winning display by Jamie Durie at the Chelsea Flower Show, UK.
2007
Designed a unique ice bucket in conjunction with Domain Chandon and auctioned for Camp Quality. Designed a special sculpture for JointVenture charity. Contributed to the book Grandiflora: Arrangements. Exhibited in Smartworks, Powerhouse Museum. Winner Marie Claire Prix d?Excellence Award for Best Accessories Designer. Contributed to the exhibition 500 Years of Spanish Art, Guggenhiem Museum, New York. Exhibited in Freestyle: New Australian Design for Living, Object Gallery, Sydney.
2006
Exhibited in Freestyle: New Australian Design for Living, Melbourne Museum. Designed award trophies for Pantene Young Women of the Year Awards. Mobile instalation at AGNSW for the Contemporary Collection Benefactors (CCB) annual supper club. Award design and mobile instalation for the Sydney Writers Festival. Launched range of rugs with Designer Rugs. Participated in Saturday in Design, Melbourne. Created Art Lover keyrings for the Melbourne Art Fair. Work exhibited in Kylie Minogue exhibition at the Powerhouse Museum. Included in SuperModels exhibition at St Margaret's Design Festival. Created unique rosary beads for the Madonna del Roasio exhibition held at Wollongong Gallery. Became a carbon neutral company. Designed a range of woven fabric for Woven Image.
2005
Twentieth anniversary of Dinosaur Designs. Exhibited in Timber exhibition, Dedece, Melbourne as part of Melbourne Fashion Week. Commissioned by Louis Vuitton to design a unique backgammon set. Designed limited edition artwork for InsideOut magazine. Survey exhibition toured to National Museum, Taipei and Art House, Singapore. Designed Australians In Film awards, Los Angeles. Commisioned to design a unique dinner table setting for Nokia 8800 phone launch, MCA, Sydney. Exhibited as part of Zaishu project at Global Gallery, Sydney for Dumbo Feather Pass It On magazine. Exhibited in Space Odyssey, as part of Zaishu project at Space, Sydney. Contributed to the Russian Art Exhibition, Guggenhiem Museum, New York. Inaugurated the COFA student award, Sydney.
2004
Commissioned by Louis Vuitton to design a chess set. Exhibited in Le Plastique exhibition as part of Melbourne Fashion Festival. Survey exhibition (see below) toured to Cairns Regional Gallery, Cairns. Commissioned to design a rug. Tutu designed for the Australian Ballet exhibited at the Ian Potter Gallery, National Gallery of Victoria. Designed award for Sculpture by the Sea. Survey exhibition toured to Gallery of Art and Design, Silpahorn University, Bangkok. Sold range at National Gallery of Australia (NGV), Canberra. Sold range to Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) New York. Exhibited at Idee as part of Tokyo Designers Block and commisioned to design range of t-shirts for the event. Launched veneer range internationally at TDB. Participated in the Commonthreads project, Brisbane. Exhibited in the Postcard Show, Cairns Regional Gallery. Commisioned to create new Object Gallery donor's tribute board.
2003
Dinosaur Designs major survey exhibition tours to Melbourne Museum, Melbourne, Craftwest gallery, Perth, and Craft Queensland, Brisbane. Commissioned to design a Tutu for the Australian Ballet. Major Dinosaur Designs exhibition at Spiral Gallery, Tokyo as part of Tokyo Designers Block. International launch of furnishing fabrics and rugs commissioned by Woven Image. Commissioned by Idee to design t-shirt range for Tokyo Designers Block. Designed award for Bombay Sapphire Design Discovery Award. Commissioned to design a range of digital cameras and computers by BenQ, Korea. Accessorised Carolina Herrera fashion parade, New York Fashion Week.
2002
Opened first international Dinosaur Designs store in Nolita, New York. Included in Objects of Desire exhibition, Object Galleries, Sydney. Included in exhibition at Sputnik, as part of Tokyo Designers Block. Major survey exhibition, Dinosaur Designs, at Object galleries as part of Sydney Festival 2003.
2001
Exhibited in Design House, Felissimo, New York. Works included in Interiors exhibition, Object Galleries, Sydney. Works included in Ecologic exhibition, Powerhouse Museum, Sydney. Produced range of dolls house furniture. Designed award for IF Awards (Independent Film).
2000
Commissioned to design glasses for Bombay Sapphire Gin. Included in Fashion Hits Home exhibition at Chapungu Gallery for Melbourne Fashion Week. Sold homewares to Donna Karan store, New York. Tenth anniversary of opening of Paddington store. Commissioned to design installation for the Olympic Arts festival, Strand Arcade, Sydney. Included in Bejewelled exhibition, Monash Gallery of Art, Melbourne and Geelong Regional Art Gallery, Geelong. A collection of work was purchased by the National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne. Commissioned to design installation for Queen Street Mall, Brisbane.
1999
Included in Accessory exhibition, Gallery 4a, Sydney, and 4 + 1 exhibition, Powerhouse Museum, Sydney. International export markets included Italy, Japan, the United States, Canada, Austria, Singapore, Germany, South Africa, New Zealand, and Hong Kong. Tenth anniversary of opening of first Dinosaur Designs store, Strand Arcade, Sydney.
1998
Included in Museum of Contemporary Art exhibition Personal Effects/The Collective Unconscious, and represented at Milan Furniture Fair, Italy. Moved to new larger studio in Strawberry Hills, Sydney. Commissioned to design and produce product range for The Warhol Look exhibition, Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney.
1997
Began experimenting with ceramics and developed range. Exhibited in Cloning Craft exhibition, Craft Victoria, Melbourne.
1996
Dinosaur Designs opened third retail outlet in South Yarra, Melbourne and fourth in The Rocks, Sydney. Designed accessories for participants in Australian Fashion Week.
1995
Expanded exports to include Idee in Japan, Henri Bendel and Bloomingdales in the United States. Commissioned to design and produce a product range for the Matisse exhibition at the National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, and other venues nationally. Designed award for Tropfest.
1994
Moved to larger premises in Surry Hills, Sydney and increased staff and production to cope with expanding international and national wholesale orders. Relocated Strand Arcade store to a larger space with in the Arcade.
1993
Dinosaur Designs exhibited at Seed, part of Seibu department store in Japan, and began to wholesale to various outlets in Japan, including Isetan. Continued to expand exports to the United States.
1992
Sold jewellery range to Harvey Nichols in London. Participated in Local Heroes exhibition, Ipswich Regional Art Gallery. Exhibited at the Australian Pavilion, Barcelona Expo. Exported to New Zealand. A collection of jewellery was purchased by the Powerhouse Museum, Sydney.
1991
Received first international magazine editorial in British Vogue. Continued to expand exports to the United Kingdom, including Whistles in London, and started exporting to Germany.
1990
Dinosaur Designs second retail store opened in Paddington. Expanded range to include homewares and glassware. Began to work with sterling silver and resin inlay.
1989
Exhibited in Australian Fashion: The Contemporary Art exhibition held at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. The exhibition then toured to Japan, South Korea and Australia. The exhibited work was acquired by the Powerhouse Museum, Sydney. The three designers travelled throughout Europe and the United States, and further developed international wholesale sales to stores including Browns and Liberty of London. Dinosaur Designs first retail store opened in Sydney's Strand Arcade. Participated in Icebreakers Parade for innovative fashion, Sydney.
1988
Began employing staff to assist in production. Participated in Fashion Design Council Parade, Melbourne, and Crafts Council Parade, Sydney. Began metal casting and continued developing resin casting techniques. Began selling jewellery range to Georges in Melbourne, and exporting to stores in United States.
1987
Established Dinosaur Designs studio in Kings Cross, and began to wholesale to retail outlets in Sydney and Melbourne. Participated in the Fashion Design Council Parade, Melbourne. Received first magazine editorial in Australian Vogue.
1986
All three completed postgraduate degrees in Professional Art Studies at City Art Institute. First exhibition at Cash Palace, Sydney. Began to experiment with hand painted resin for jewellery production.
1985
The three designers established Dinosaur Designs and began selling hand painted clothes and 'Fimo' jewellery at Sydney's Paddington Bazaar.
1983
Louise Olsen, Stephen Ormandy and Liane Rossler met while undertaking Bachelor of Visual Arts degrees at City Art Institute, Sydney, specialising in drawing and painting.
