Who Makes It Happen

Tony Davis
Founder and CIO* of Impossible Things Ltd

Tony started as a freelancer with one of the first digital toolsets in the UK in 1985 (a Mac, Quark Xpress, and 12 fonts etc). As a result he acquired a great deal of now irrelevant technical know-how which even now he still uses. He was head-hunted to work for the Israel-based Scitex in Europe in 1992. After working for Quantel on desktop and high-end retouching tools he was head-hunted again for his last proper job  at Apple, Inc where he evangelised new digital video and publishing tools to broadcasters such as the BBC and post-production companies. He has spoken widely in UK, Europe, and USA on digital tools, workflow, design and IP. Sometimes people listened.

He founded Art Meets Matter Ltd in 2002 to turn his ideas into things. Here he worked in partnership with a number of high-profile companies and IP owners (Penguin Books, Random House, TimeOut Group and others) to create unique, stylish, trendsetting designs. One of his most successful projects was the now ubiquitous range of designs based on the classic Penguin Books of the 1930s. His work has featured in leading press worldwide for over a decade. His designs have also sold in leading retailers such as Harrods, Conran, Design Museum, John Lewis, Purves & Purves, and many independents across the UK, Europe, USA and Australasia.

Tony founded Impossible Things to explore the virtual nature of ideas as much of the physical reality of objects. He thinks we have enough stuff in the world but is happy to help make the stuff we have better designed and more useful. He also thinks people should think a lot and innovate in as many ways as possible. Impossible Things is designed to help do all of that.

* CIO = Chief Idea Officer