Shawn Littrell was born in Seattle, Washington, and spent his formative years in the southwest living in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
After accepting a job with Buffalo Composite Design, Littrell assisted with the design and production of a new collection of road bikes. Combining his experience in bicycle design with his interest in furniture, Littrell began concentrating on the production of carbon fiber furniture and introduced his own collection of carbon fiber chairs at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair in New York.
Littrell was accepted into the environmental design program at Art Center College of Design and as a first year student was awarded Best Individual Design for his multi-functional loft furniture in Art Share L.A.’s Articulating Spaces Furniture Competition. He also entered Art Center’s Everyone Deserves a Roof competition, a project based on supplying shelter for the homeless. Littrell’s mobile living unit was one of four designs chosen for future prototype development.
At the Santa Monica Design District’s Competition in 2004, Littrell received honorable mention for his rocking lounge chair. Later that year, his chair was selected to represent Art Center at the Salone Internazionale del Mobile in Milan, Italy.
