FÖLD

FÖLD

Our 4 favourite lamps Introducing Scandinavia Looking back: Verner Panton Wood & Steel; The new norsemen

£ 18

FÖLD YOUR CHAIR DOWN When you love design, it’s not about producing. It’s about creating what you feel is right, and making someone want it in a way that isn’t neither logic nor understandable. Giving the audience a feeling of wanting something so bad, that you will do anything to get the hold of it.

Our homes are our sanctuaries, and we tend to fill them up with ourselves; our personalities, our families and our dreams. The choises you make while moulding your rooms, tend to have an impact on how your personality develops, and how your friends and family sees you.

Scandinavian furniture design focuses on function in an exiting way, and usually finds the most beautiful ways to present it. That is why it has become popular all over the world, and stayed modern for years and years.

Sit back, and enjoy your minutes of reading about the scandinavian approach to the everyday life. Maybe you’ll discover a new favourite.

Astri Riedl Smeplass EDITOR

Astri Riedl Smeplass

Graphic Design: Riedl Design Trondheim, norway

2013

IllusTRATIONS: Riedl Design

FONTS: LETTER GOTHIC GOTHAM KOZUKA

14/15

Editor:

16-19

6-13 4/5

3:12 2014

OLD IDEAS / NEW BRAINS

LIGHT - Two classic lamps meets todays design

NEW MINDED SPACING - 30 years of design

INTRODUCING SCANDINAVIA

FÖLD MAGAZINE

THE

VERNER PANTON - Still a classic

GOOD SEATING

IMEÜBLE - Amazing norwegian design

WOOD & STEEL; THE NEW NORSEMEN

30/31

20-25

29 26-27

INSIDE

Thanks to:

HAY.DK

THENORDICMOVEMENT.com

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

BJØRN JØRUND BLIKSTAD

WIKIPEDIA

Danmark.dk

The world's largest population of arctic reindeer herders can be found in Norway

Denmark doesn't do mountains. The tallest hill is a mere 170 meters high. It's called mollehoj.

In Sweden, there are more than 300 000 people, having the surname Karlsson.

Now known world-wide, the inventors of LEGO toys got started in Billund, Denmark in 1932 manufacturing not LEGO blocks but stepladders! Billund is now the home of Legoland Theme Park

F

It is a common misunderstanding to believe that Finland and iceland are Scandinavian coutries, even though they're not. They are nordic countries.

A T S

In Norway's dark winter during the Polar Nights, the sun is up for only 3 hours a day in some parts (and in others, doesn't come up at all), a phenomena which is said to affect and slow pregnancies of Norwegian women. On the other hand, the NRK reports that there are more births in Norway in April than in any other month - apart from the town of Bod, where the majority of births are in October and November!

C

Sweden is known for innovation and inventions. It is the country that first offered the perfected zipper, the marine propeller, the fridge, the heart pace maker and even created your computer mouse. Not to forget the much-loved discount furniture retailer IKEA and fashion from H&M.

The cities in Scandinavia are wonderful travel destinations for every visitor in the mood for interesting Scandinavian city life and modern urban atmosphere.

The capitals of the Scandinavian countries are Stockholm (Sweden), Oslo (Norway) and Copenhagen (Denmark).

Other great city destinations include the Norwegian city of Bergen, and Malo and Gothenburg in Sweden.

The coldest hotel in the world - Ice Hotel - is located in the village Jukkasj채rvi in northern Sweden. It is rebuilt each year.

/ 6/ MARCH 2013 6 MARCH 2013

SCANDINAVIAN DESIGN Scandinavian design emerged in the 1950s in the three cold, old traditionned countries Denmark, Norway and

Scandinavian design. The ideological background was

Sweden. It is a design movement, that is character-

availability of new low-cost materials and methods for

ized by simplicity, minimalism and last but not least

mass production. Scandinavian design often makes

the functionality.

use of form-pressed wood, plastics, anodized or

the emergence of a particular Scandinavian form of social democracy in the 1950s, as well as the increased

enameled aluminum or pressed steel.

THE LUNNING PRIZE, awarded to the outstanding Scandinavian designers between 1951 and 1970, was

THE CONCEPT OF Scandinavian design has been the

instrumental in both making Scandinavian design a

subject of many scholarly debates, exhibitions and

recognized commodity, and in defining the profile

marketing agendas during the last fifty years, but

of Scandinavian design. Since 2006, the tradition of

many of the democratic design ideals that were the

a pan-Nordic design award has been resumed with

central theme of the movement have survived and can

the Forum AID Award. The idea that beautiful and

be found resonant in contemporary design work by

functional everyday objects not only should only be

Scandinavian and international designers.

affordable to the wealthy, but to all, is a core theme in the development of modernism and functionalism, but is probably most completely realised in post-WWI

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New minded

S P AC I N G Scandinavian furniture has reached new hights. Instead of letting the room define the furniture, the furniture

thenordicmovement.com

by Laura Stadler-Jensen

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MARCH MARCH2013 2013

defines the guide lines of the entire space.

/9

HAY SHOP The Danish design company HAY became famous at the IMM Cologne 2003.

Instead of copying the masters do they want to develop their works further in modern, contemporary context.

/50 /60 /70 /80 / 10

MARCH 2013

Around the 80s it became clear that Scandinavian design lost ground.

HEE DINING CHAIR Hee Welling’s designs are deeply rooted in the Scandinavian design tradition, which is evident in his simple, functional and refined designs. Form and function are the two important guidelines in his works.

JUDITH GURA has followed the Scandinavian furniture industry for

more interest in using plastics and metals and experimenting with off-

Scandinavians have never had the craving for

almost 30 years. After realizing a book had not been written about the

beat forms that are very obviously coming out of the machine. The other

new things that Americans have ‒ where the

industry since the 80s and taking note of the growing number of new

major change is that the entire market, and the designers themselves,

idea of “planned obsolescence” meant we

designs introduced since the classics, she knew it was time for a Scan-

are very international. There is no such thing as “typical Scandinavian

always wanted the newest thing. In the late

dinavian revival. The result was the creation of the recently published,

design” any more. At one time, I could walk into a room and identify

60s and 70s, the Italians became much more

“Sourcebook of Scandinavian Furniture.” I had the opportunity to discuss

a piece of Scandinavian furniture. I can’t do that anymore, and that’s

experimental. They were more open to new

the book with Judith and explore what she sees as the driving forces

really a good thing.

ideas and the market responded to this, and

behind today’s Scandinavian furniture designs, how designers are being influenced by the classics, which innovations are breaking new ground and what she sees for the future.

What are the latest directions in Scandinavian furniture design?

turned away from the Scandinavians.

Whatʼs happened since the classics?

Nothing really happened for almost two decades. To a large degree,

What traditions are being kept in the design

the designers were intimidated by the greats. They may have thought,

styles of today?

“What can I do after Hans Wegner or Alvar Aalto?” Either they chose not

The traditions are not as visual so much as

The new developments are mostly in terms of new materials and

to do anything or to do something that followed in the same tradition.

cultural. Much of the design coming from the

technology. The original tradition of respect for craft, ecological design

The other thing that hampered Scandinavian design, particular Danish

Nordic countries has always been socially re-

and love for natural materials and handwork still remains. Now there is

furniture, was that it was good, well made and served its purpose. The

sponsible with a concern for ergonomics and universal design. In general, social concerns and humanism have had priority over novelty and design. For example, back to the 60s there

MARCH 2013

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What about the future? Where do you see

was good looking Scandinavian furniture for

the designers today recognize they cannot

children and they have also designed fur-

count on the success of their predecessors

things going from here?

niture for the elderly and the disabled. This

to be successful.

There will be more diversity overall. We’re

tradition still informs their design today. They

Which designers and pieces best illustrate

already seeing it. Some of the new designs

are as concerned with whether the chair is

this new movement?

are crossing the boundaries between furni-

comfortable than they are whether it’s really

Design firms like Norway Says (Norway),

ture and art. What’s being called, “design art”

good looking.

CKR (Sweden) and Komplot Design (Denmark)

in the U.S. or limited edition pieces, is now

Are the new designers resting on the success

are working in interesting new directions.

of interest to Scandinavian designers as well.

of the 50s?

Komplot, a team of two designers, have been

Kallemo in Sweden for instance has done

Not any more. But it took about two genera-

experimenting with new materials, form and

some limited editions by designers like

tions. This book couldn’t have been written in

technology including rigid felt infused with

Jonas Bohlin that are as much about

the 90s. Designers had to get far enough away

a kind of fiber glass or resin and a chair made

art as they are furniture. If you look at

from the burden of the tradition to feel free

with laminated, heavy rubber. The firm Front,

Christian Flindt’s rainbow colored Lucite

to experiment and explore. Around the 80s it

a team of four Swedish women, is using com-

stacked chairs called “Parts of a Rainbow,”

became clear that Scandinavian design lost

puter imaging to create pieces literally out of

that’s also a good example. All of this is

ground. When increasing promotion wasn’t

thin air using something called Rapid Proto-

going to make the market more exciting, but

enough, fundamental change in the design

typing. Some of the other designers to men-

we’re not going to go back to the time of

was necessary. There was an awareness that

tion include Louise Campbell and Kasper Salto

classic Scandinavian furniture because that

selling it as “Scandinavian design” was selling

(DK), Stefan Lindfors and Sari Anttonen in

belonged when it was.

the same old image. There is no doubt that

(FIN), Thomas Sandell and Anki Gnieb (SE), Johan Verde (NO) and Sigurdur Gustafsson (IS).

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MARCH 2013

AMAZING DIVERSITY The stores of today offers an extremely wide range of products. And if that wasn’t enough, you can also often choose between colors, materials and even sizes. All you need is a place to put it and the wallet to fit.

SCANDINAVIAN MODERN

Designers and architects are less concerned with design

A spare and stripped down appearance defines the style,

theory than practical and social humanitarian matters.

although classical ordering and some classical elements,

Common to Scandinavian design are simplicity, human

such as columns, may appear.

scale, modesty, practicality, elegance, and excellent crafts-

Common attributes to look for: a copper, brick facade and

manship. They carry traditions of the environment or land-

irregular grouping.

scape, respect for materials, and natural materials.

Common building types include railway terminals,

National Romanticism and Neoclassicism dominates.

churches, libraries, town halls, houses, and public housing.

Plans may be simple or interlocking rectangles.

MARCH 2013

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FLOWER POT (1968)

Werner Panton The lamp consists of two semi-circular spheres facing each other. The diameter of the upper sphere is twice as large as the lower one. The lower sphere hides the

UNFOLD PENDANT (2005)

bulb, while its interior serves as a colourful reflecting

MUUTO NEW NORDIC

surface.

The industry lamp is a classic, and sought-after design MATERIAL: ENAMELLED INDUSTRIAL METAL

that is exiting to provide a new perspective on. The interpretation of the industrial design classic comes in a refined material that gives the lamp a modern and warm appearance. The soft silicone rubber gives Unfold a modern and warm personality. It also enables the lamp to be folded into a neat package by a slight push on the top.

MATERIAL: SILICONE RUBBER

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MARCH 2013

PH5 (1958)

POUL HENNINGSEN The PH5 lamp provides a glare free illumination. The design of the visible reflectors ensures that light is directed both vertically and horizontally. Light is diffused through a sandblasted glass shield located in the lower shade. The inside cone is painted red, and together with the small blue reflector creates a warmer tone of light. The Louis Poulsen PH5 pendant lamp was designed to hang low above a table while at the same time giving a moderate light to the surroundings.

MATERIAL: ALUMINUM WITH MATTE FINISH

E27 (2011)

matthias stühlbom E27 departs from the essence of a lamp; the socket – creating a simple yet strong object that celebrates the potential beauty in simplicity. The simplicity of the naked bulb is hard to compete with. It represents something that feels romantic and contemporary at the same time.

MATERIAL: SILICONE RUBBER

MARCH 2013

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16 MARCH / 16/MARCH 20132013

OLD IDEAS/ NEW BRAINS

A new Scandinavian Modern revival is under way, but it’s not quite with the high technology spark innovation in form and function. While retaining the deep traditions of the past, it took the basic concept of modernism and fused it with the traditional materials. The result is beautifully made furniture in organic shapes chiefly fashioned from wood, which is in abundance in Scandinavia. It´s basic philosophy ‘beauty for all’ has arguably been continued into the present day with the Swedish phenomenon of IKEA.

MARCH 2013

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ARNE JACOBSEN

SVEN IVAR DYSTHE

CARL MALMSTEN Furniture designer, architect, and educator

He is remembered for his contribution to

who was known for his devotion to traditional

architectural Functionalism as well as

Swedish craftmanship and his opposition to functionalism. He considered rationalization of the home according to some functionalist principles a debasement of its traditional role as an intimate place for gathering and repose.

NO

1931-

for the worldwide success he enjoyed with simple but effective chair designs.

In spite of his success with his chair at the Paris Exhibition in 1925, it was during the 1950s that his interest in furniture design peaked.

SE

DK

1888-1972

1902-1971

Industrial designer, who is especially known for his furniture. He studied in Britain, where in 1953 he graduated in industrial design at the Royal College of Art in London. In 1958 he started his own practice in Oslo and quickly won recognition internationally for his work.

The Royal Court announced 13 January 2010 that the king has appointed Dysthe Knight of the 1st of St. Olav for his efforts as an industrial designer.

ANKI GNEIB

TORBJĂ˜RN ANDERSSEN

HEE WELLING He has mostly drawn furniture, but also glass, textiles and lamps. Throughout Norway Says

DK

1972-

he has developed and enhanced relationship between Norwegian industry and designers, working for Norwegian design internationally.

In 2004, members of Norway Says became the first Norwegian design group being hired

SE 1965-

by the IKEA corporation.

NO

1976-

Hee Welling is a young Danish designer who

Anki today works as an independent

graduated as a designer from the Danish

architect and designer and runs her own

Design School in Copenhagen in 2003,

studio in Stockholm. The studio works on a

specialising in product and furniture design.

wide range of projects, such as total interior

Hee Welling’s designs are deeply rooted in

design solutions for residential homes and

the Scandinavian design tradition, which is

public spaces as well as furniture, lighting as

evident in his simple, functional and refined

well as product design. She typically runs

designs. Form and function are the two

projects from an early stage to the final result

important guidelines in his works.

with a big amount of creative thinking and focus on facility branding.

MARCH 2013

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MARCH 2013

FACING NEW CONTRASTS WITHIN NORDIC CULTURE

MARCH 2013

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LOUNGE SEATING BY WERNER

SCANDINAVIAN DESIGN = GOOD STORAGING

A GOOD WORKING SPACE NEEDS LOTS OF WOOD

HAY DESIGNHOUSE USES CONTRAST COLOURS

Text: The Wall Street Journal

by J. S. MARCUS

TWELVE YEARS AGO THIS WEEK,

Eliasson, Danish chef René Redzepi and

tor, speaking about the whole of the

Denmark's Queen Margrethe II and

Oslo architecture firm Snøhetta have

Nordic region. Functionalism may be

five sovereign countries—Denmark,

Sweden's King Carl XVI Gustaf offi-

risen to top of their fields.

a mere style elsewhere; in the Nordic

Sweden, Norway, Finland and Iceland.

countries, where a culture was built

These countries participate in political

cially dedicated the eight-kilometer Øresund Bridge, formally linking the

Last weekend, Denmark's Louisi-

category to a specific description of

up in response to harsh natural condi-

organizations, such as the Nordic Coun-

tions, "we want to use what we have

cil of Ministers, and share an embassy

Danish capital with southern Sweden.

ana Museum of Modern Art opened a

No one realized it at the time, but that

comprehensive exhibition called "New

around us in a very honest way," he

complex in Berlin. Still, Nordic isn't al-

event turned out to be the firing of a

Nordic," which explores the state of

says. Simplicity, he believes, is what

ways easy to define, and may include

starter pistol, ushering in a new era

pan-Nordic identity. Although primar-

connects the culinary innovations of

Greenland, an autonomous part of

of cultural prowess and exchange

ily an architecture exhibition, the show

Mr. Redzepi's Noma, the Copenhagen

the Kingdom of Denmark, and even

among Europe's Nordic peoples, who,

includes everyone from an Icelandic

restaurant often cited as the best in the

Estonia, whose language is related to

in growing closer to each other, have

photographer and a Danish restau-

world, with "the way we make design

Finnish.

also brought the world closer to them.

rateur to a Norwegian novelist and a

and buildings," as well as the several

Finnish textile designer.

schools of Nordic film, like Denmark's

The Louisiana exhibition features a

Dogme 95 movement, which sought

number of "theaters," or installations, in which practitioners from various

In detective fiction and cooking, in art, architecture and design, the new

What unites the vast expanse of Eu-

to radically simplify the technology of

Nordic way has won over fans and fol-

rope's northern edge in such a wide

making movies.

lowers everywhere, as figures such as

range of disciplines? "I think we have

disciplines are meant to answer the question: "What does Nordic mean to

the late Swedish crime novelist Stieg

a special way of looking at things,"

In recent decades, "Nordic" has gone

you?" For many, the key to this new

Larsson, Icelandic-Danish artist Olafur

says Kjeld Kjeldsen, the show's cura-

from a loose geographic or linguistic

Nordic identity is the shared political

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MARCH 2013

THE LIVINGROOM BECAME A PERSONAL ZONE IN THE 50S

60S CHIC S-CHAIR CAMPAIGN

THE FLOWERPOT LAMPS

LOUNGE ENTIRELLY DECORATED BY PANTON

vision of the social-welfare state and its

Miracle," when the international art

1960s with their series of detective

emphasis on the collective rather than

world discovered a number of new

stories, featuring a Swedish policeman

published cartoons that Danish Muslims and many in the international

individual endeavors.

talents from the region. Mr. Eliasson,

named Martin Beck. "I read them when

community found offensive. Elsewhere,

now 45 years old, recalls that he didn't

I was in school," says Danish television

crime novelists have used the genre to

"The sense of collectivity" is so strong

like being pushed into the Nordic cat-

writer Søren Sveistrup. Mr. Sveistrup is

report on sex trafficking and overseas

in Nordic countries, says artist Olafur

egory at the time, but more recently,

the creator of "Forbrydelsen," known

use of child labor.

Eliasson, "that it's almost instinctive."

he says, he has embraced it. "I have

in English as "The Killing," a Danish

Mr. Eliasson, whose sculptures and

come to appreciate the culture I carry."

crime series, now filming its third sea-

The outsider status of Scandinavia's

installations are often developed in a

He also says he feels a strong affinity

son, which has become a hit around

new immigrants is a theme in the

the world.

Berlin studio with a large staff, says that

with fellow Nordic superstars, such as

the belief in a collective whole doesn't

Mr. Redzepi, who has cooked for his

work of 41-year-old Swedish artist Sir-

mean a uniformity of opinion. What is

studio, and Snøhetta, with whom he

The Martin Beck character is the

at 15 and has come to prominence

"unique" about the Nordic idea of a col-

collaborated on the firm's 2007 Oslo

forefather of Henning Mankell's Kurt

in the period following the art-world

lective, he says, "is the high degree of

Opera House, one of Europe's most

Wallander, Stieg Larsson's muckraking

buzz about the Nordic Miracle. Unlike

diversity."

admired new buildings.

journalist Mikael Blomkvist, and, most

many Nordic artists, Mr. Namazi is less

recently, Harry Hole, a tough Oslo de-

inspired by the natural world than by

ous Namazi, who emigrated from Iran

Mr. Eliasson, born in Denmark to Ice-

The social-welfare state, particularly

tective created by Jo Nesbø. The Nordic

what the Stockholm-based artist calls

landic parents and strongly marked

in its Swedish incarnation, has had a

countries "are cozy," Mr. Sveistrup says,

"the urban landscape" of Scandinavia,

by his encounters with the Icelandic

strong Utopian component. A con-

"but there are a lot of problems beneath

visible in the menacing suburban

landscape, says that he tried to avoid

trary need to find what was lurking

the surface." He cites Denmark's diffi-

balcony and satellite dish of his 2002

the Nordic label for much of his career.

underneath the egalitarian prosper-

culties in assimilating its new Muslim

sculpture "Periphery."

An early sign of the Nordic countries'

ity of Swedish society inspired the

minority. Denmark's domestic troubles

current cultural flowering came in the

couple Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö to

made headlines around the world in

While Nordic societies have grown

early 2000s with the so-called "Nordic

pioneer the Nordic crime novel in the

2005 when a Copenhagen newspaper

more cosmopolitan over the past

MARCH 2013

/ 23

decade, the countries have maintained

Storåkers says that being part of the

There are major differences in

spring, Esben Holmboe Bang, a

taste inside the Nordic region, says

30-year-old Danish-born chef, saw his

an independent spirit in the wider

Nordic region is "like having brothers

world. Norway and Iceland remain out-

and sisters." You might say, "my brother

Mirkku Kullberg, chief executive of

1.5-year-old Oslo restaurant, Maaemo,

side the European Union; Denmark and

and sister don't really look like me, but

Artek, the Helsinki furniture company

receive two Michelin stars in its debut

Sweden have stayed clear of the euro.

when you meet other people they look

co-founded by architect Alvar Aalto,

ranking. In fashion, Sweden's market-

like family."

whose application of Modernism to

ing-savvy, casual-wear labels have

Nordic materials still stands as a foun-

countered the "nice and cute" image

This separate sensibility has promoted a thriving regional art market, says Michael Storåkers, chief executive and

Marius Holst—a Norwegian film direc-

dation of Scandinavian architecture

with sleek and snappy exports. Jeans

head of the Bukowskis Group, Scan-

tor who often uses Danish and Swed-

and design. After Finland and Japan,

labels like Nudie and Cheap Monday

dinavia's biggest auction house, with

ish talent in his movies—says, "If I go

Sweden is Artek's most important

have turned the skinny-jeans trend

offices in Sweden and Helsinki.

to Los Angeles, I feel very Nordic." Al-

market, but "Swedes take an easier ap-

into high-volume sales, while Acne,

though he is keenly aware of linguistic

proach" to home furnishings, she says,

long transcending its denim origins,

differences between the three Scan-

than the Finns, whose general serious-

has become a label of first resort

ness she describes as "fundamentalist."

around the world. Meanwhile, WeSC,

Bukowskis has proved a prime seller of sculpture by Mr. Eliasson, and Bu-

dinavian countries, on one hand, and

kowskis' Swedish competitor, Stock-

Finland and Iceland, on the other, he

holms Auktionsverk, holds the record

concedes there is a "common state of

for a Swedish painting. Anders Zorn's

mind." There is "some sort of reserve in

"Summer Delight" (1886) sold in 2010

Nordic culture," he says.

for 26 million Swedish kronor. Mr.

/ 24

The New Nordic cuisine wave, ushered in by Mr. Redzepi and a small

a Stockholm-based fashion label with a skateboard appeal, has helped to turn headphones into fashion accessories.

group of Swedish chefs, has reached

European runways are also feeling

the outer rungs of Scandinavia. This

the heat of Nordic creativity. Henrik

MARCH 2013

Vibskov, a Danish designer who shows in Paris, has a playful fashion sense that

Nordic materials still stands as a foundation of

steers clear of Scandinavian minimal-

Scandinavian architecture and design

ism, emphasizing instead the eclectic sensibility of multicultural Copenhagen.

Mirkku Kullberg

One of the more compelling panNordic creations this past year is the

neo-Functionalist silver bar set created

for the Danish label Georg Jensen by Finnish-born Swedish architect and designer Thomas Sandell. Simple but elegant, the set, including silver coasters and sculptural bottle stops, is about as close to luxury as Nordic design gets.

Mr. Sandell says the emphasis on the collective has created a fear of the luxurious, in fashion as well as design.

"You can spend a lot of money to look poor," he says of high-end, ready-towear Scandinavian fashion labels. In our tradition," he says. "You should never show off."

During a recent conversation at his Stockholm studio, Mr. Sandell offered up a custom-made solution to the problem—his Rolex watch, from which he had carefully removed the bling-laden bracelet, replacing it with a humble leather band.

"I'm not trying to be Nordic," he says. But admits, "I know I am."

THE CULTURAL PRIDE Louisiana Museum og modern art just outside of Copenhagen, Denmark puts nordic and scandinavian design back on the agenda. Here you can explore art, as well as furniture and architecture in the eyes of the modern scandinavian society.

MARCH 2013

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IMEÜble Imüeble was first discovered in the mind and sketchbook of a young designer from Norway. Bjørn Jørund Blikstad, an avant-garde furniture designer and masters degree graduate from Oslo National Academy of the Arts, was tired of traditional shelving options and wanted to discover what happens when utility and design collide.

‘I was intrigued by the concept of a link between the storage inside and outside

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MARCH 2013

our minds. An idea that our memory functions are spatial, like when you’re reading a book, spatial images occur of scenes and characters. It’s that transition from the two dimensional to a feeling of three dimensions that is very fascinating.’

With Imeüble, Blikstad has achieved an incredible and engaging representation of that transition of memory from 2D to 3D that not only looks beautiful but also works beautifully too.

MARCH 2013

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Ä Ö Æ Ø Å

28 MARCH / 28/MARCH 20132013

THE EGG (1958) Depth

Width

79 (95) cm

86 cm

Height 74 cm

Depth

Width

50 cm

54,5 cm

Height 83 cm

Depth

Width

61 cm

50 cm

factured by Republic of Fritz

Height 107 cm

hagen, Denmark. It is manu-

Weight 5.5 kg

by Arne Jacobsen for the Radisson SAS hotel in Copen-

Weight 5.9 kg

The Egg is a chair designed

Weight 18.1 kg

ARNE JACOBSEN

Hansen. It was designed in a typical Jacobsen style, using state-of-the-art material.

MATERIAL: STEEL FRAME, FABRIC COVER

THE BENTO CHAIR (2012)

PETRUS PALMER The chair is generous in size and has a built-in flex in the backrest ensuring extremely good seating comfort. The broad legs are a wink at the tradition of bending wood, but at the same time it’s a bit bold. “It’s definitely messing with your preconceptions of Nordic design”, MATERIAL: ASH WOOD

THE S-CHAIR (1967)

Verner Panton The world’s first moulded plastic chair, it is considered to be one of the masterpieces of Danish design. Stackable.

MATERIAL: PLASTIC

[tʃɛə] MARCH 2013

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Illustration: Astri Riedl Smeplass

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MARCH 2013

AHEAD OF

TIME

Text: denmark.dk

by Carl H. Berg

With his provocative choices of material, his playful shapes and his bold use of colour the enfant terrible of Danish design Verner Panton has made some of the most iconic Danish design including the S chair and the flowerpot lamps

BORN IN 1926 Panton began his creative career as a painter before studying architecture at the Royal Danish Academy

The S-chair

During the sixties and seventies Panton experimented with

of Art. After graduating in 1951 he worked for a while at the

designing entire environments, often described as radical,

office of the iconic architect and designer Arne Jacobsen.

psychedelic and suitable for the space age. Among his

Panton got this job with a bit of help from his father in law,

famous works during this period are the Visiona II interior

another Danish architect and design giant Poul Henningsen

at the 1970 Cologne Furniture Fair and his design for the

whose step-daughter Panton had married in 1950.

editorial house of German magazine Der Spiegel.

ALL WAS SET for Panton to pursue a more “conventional”

PANTON CONTINUED his prolific work in the 80s and 90s

career in the Danish design and architecture world. But

renovating and redesigning buildings and constantly

Panton proved to be “stubborn and forever young” as Poul

inventing new furniture. Between ʻ81 and ʻ86 he won the

Henningsen expressed it, and instead of staying on in Arne

German design prize Deutsche Auswahl five times and in

Jacobsen’s studio he went on a three year study tour of

1998 Panton was awarded the Cross of Honour of the Order

Europe in a converted VW van that functioned as his office.

of Dannebrog by the Danish Queen.

Daring furniture design

Verner Panton died on September 5th 1998, just 12 days

Back in Denmark, Panton set up his own none mobile studio

before the inauguration of a major retrospective exhibition

and started transforming the numerous impressions from

of his work.

his travels into some of the most daring furniture design the world had seen. “The principal purpose of my work is to challenge people to use their imagination” he exclaimed.

Among his most famous pieces is the S chair, which became the world’s first one-piece moulded plastic chair, the cone chair and the flowerpot lamps.

MARCH 2013

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Defying gravity

The Heart Cone Chair was both futuristic and shocking. So much so that when it was exhibited in a shop window in New York City police had to order its removal due to the traffic chaos its presence created.

NEXT ISSUE: APRIL

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MARCH 2013

MARCH 2013

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