After graduating from the Royal College of Art in 2001 with a master’s in design, Mika Tolvanen established his own studio in Helsinki. He’s since worked with some of the world’s top designers and manufacturers and earned numerous accolades, including the 2012 Bruno Mathsson Award. Tolvanen takes a functional approach in his work, striving to create for the need. "The objective is not only to design products," he explains, "but rather to look for occasions that need design. What really defines objects is how we use them, not what they appear to be." A reinterpretation of an antique umbrella stand that he spied at a flea market, his Hoop Umbrella Stand (2016) consists of a slender oval steel wire rim above a weighty cast-iron base with compact footprint for stable umbrella storage. Made in Taiwan.  

Photo Courtesy of Design Within Reach