AKANKSHA DEO SHARMA

INDUSTRIAL DESIGNER, VISUAL ARTIST

Akanksha’s design approach combines craft with social responsibility. She is IKEA’s first and only Indian in-house designer, and infuses their famous Scandinavian aesthetic with her first-hand knowledge of Indian textiles and handicrafts.

Her work includes the award-winningFörändring collection, featuring mats, lamps and bowls made from rice straw: a farming by-product that is often burned and adds to poor air quality in northern India. Akanksha has been recognised by Forbes 30 Under 30, with features in Dezeen, Design Boom, FRAME, Architectural Digest and Elle Decor among others. She is vocal about the accountability she feels as a young designer, and remains on the lookout for new ways that she can design projects with purpose.