Collection by Marianne Johnsgård
On the Scene at Stockholm Design Week 2013: Furniture Fair
Furniture expo Stockholm Furniture Fair is the largest exhibition of Scandinavian design, with 80 percent of the 730 exhibitors being from the Nordic countries. Still, the outlook is international, with Oki Sato, the founder of Japanese design studio Nendo, as this year’s Guest of Honour.Nendo’s presence is visible not only in the entrance hall, where the installation ”80 sheets of Mountains” is placed, but also at various producers who have collaborated with the design studio on brand new products.
It is about the creation of products rather than the products themselves, says Oki Sato of the Nendo installation in the entrance hall of Stockholm Furniture Fair. 80 lasercut sheets of Forex foam board take on mountain-like shapes when stretched, and create a partly invisible landscape surrounding examples of Nendo’s designs up through the last decade.
Norwegian designers Torbjørn Anderssen and Espen Voll, of former Norway Says fame, now known as Anderssen & Voll, have created the wool throw Berg, meaning ”mountain”. Traditional textile craft is merged with a modern pattern and color combinations. According to manufacturer Røros Tweed the throws will be available in the US through Design Within Reach from the autumn of 2013.
Nendo’s new product w132 for Swedish brand Wästberg is not a single item but a lamp system: A collection of parts that can be arranged in different configurations depending on what base, shade and/or pole is chosen. The shade comes in three different shapes and the lamp system is available in white, black and blue.
In Between is a true Nordic collaboration between the Danish brand &tradition and Finnish designer Sami Kallio. The name plays on the combination of industrial production and handcraft that goes into making the chair. In Between is made in soild wood and form-pressed veneer, and comes in white or smoked oiled oak as well as stained black ash and stained grey ash.
Inspiration can be found everywhere: For Massproductions’ Chris Martin, the idea to the design of the Mega daybed came while he was looking at freshly baked bread on a wire rack at his local bakery. Both bread and leisure furniture represent comfort, life and stability, according to Martin. Plump cushions are enclosed and lifted by thin steel tube side panels.
The bold and generously sized Bento chair is a modern take on the tradition of bending wood. The backrest has a built-in flex to provide good seating comfort. Designed by Swedish design studio Form Us With Love for the one year old Finnish brand One Nordic Furniture Company, the chair can be bought online for international shipping and is assembled by the buyer in four steps. ,