At 17, Marcus had his first exhibition of his fine and functional art. Featured in the show were fine Walnut jewelry boxes, Walnut turned vessels with lids, oil paintings and pencil drawings. The young Mr. Golden received first place at that show for the fine wooden boxes and for his creative booth design, which appeared as a mini-gallery of his creations.​

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He attended the Banff School of Fine Art, in Banff Alberta, Canada, where he further honed his design skills. He studied multiple disciplines, including design, fine art, dance, still photography, and filmmaking.

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It was filmmaking that spoke to Marcus most passionately. After leaving the Banff School of Fine Art, Mr. Golden began a career in filmmaking, starting as an editor and progressing to an assistant feature film cinematographer. Marcus’ filmmaking career took him over five continents, where he studied and absorbed the art and architecture of other cultures. His world travels have inspired his aesthetic sensibility, and these influences come across in his elegant and sensual furniture designs. ​

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In 1986, he directed and produced his first feature film, Bloody Wednesday, under the name, Mark Gilhuis. That film is now considered “the number one most underrated horror film of all time,” according to Film Reviews from the Basement, a Canadian film critic. (It is currently available on DVD through Netflix and Amazon)

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In the early 90’s, Marcus attended a retrospective of the great master of furniture design, Isamu Noguchi, which re-ignited his childhood passion for designs with wood. He began working in wood again, designing and building personal projects such as cabinetry, and a massive Oak painter’s easel.

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It was a move to a new house in Sedona, Arizona, that led to his shopping for furniture and purchasing a coffee table – an event that would cause a dramatic turn in his life.  The table he purchased was created from a piece of an ancient and rare wood that only grows in the southwestern U.S., called Alligator Juniper. He ordered the coffee table, but it was taking weeks longer than promised for the piece to be delivered. He spoke to the owner of the company, who told Marcus if he could work on the piece himself, he would pay him for his time. Ironically, Marcus was being paid to create the piece he had already purchased!

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But the nuisance turned out to be a blessing, as Marcus learned how to work with this stunning wood, and was paid for the effort. Marcus realized that he wanted to get back into making furniture. He and his partner, Aalia, opened a gallery in Sedona, Arizona that specialized in hand-crafted wood furniture made from these rare southwestern woods, Alligator Juniper and Manzanita.  Alligator Juniper has amazing grain patterns, and can be shaped into hard-edge and organic designs, perfect for expressing Marcus’ furniture concepts. He has created 15 pieces of furniture as of this date, with many more designs in the works.

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Marcus Gabriel Golden Designs  is opening a fine furniture design studio in Los Angeles, California,  Fall 2012. Mr. Golden will be selling two distinct lines of furniture:  the Signature Line; MGG Designs LA, and the limited production line; MGG URBAN.

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MGG Designs LA  will feature one-of-a-kind functional art pieces, such as entryway tables, cocktail tables, dining room sets, end tables, display tables made from Alligator Juniper, Walnut, glass, metal, and ceramic elements.

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MGG URBAN  will be a limited production line which will utilize reclaimed and recycled materials of wood, glass, metal and ceramic built into entryway tables, cocktail tables, dining room tables, end tables, display tables, desks, and credenzas.

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Marcus Gabriel Golden Designs  is also available for designing installations such as bookshelves, cabinetry, credenzas, mantles, entertainment centers, bars, stair treads, architectural details, posts, and beams for Residential and Commercial clients.