Highlights from the Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair
In February 2020, at the time of the last Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair, little did organizers know this particular fair would be one of the last the design community would see for quite some time given the brewing COVID-19 pandemic. At a warehouse nightclub as the snow came down, Interior Design attended a late-night launch party. Nightclubs? Parties? One day, once again.
Until then, Scandinavian design rises to the (virtual) occasion and the Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair City & Digital Edition is ongoing through February 14 with a fresh batch of product launches, online (and a few offline) showroom openings and exhibits, and a virtual presentation of Greenhouse, the fair’s annual platform for design schools and emerging designers.
From a seating collection as indulgent as a buttery French breakfast pastry to a sofa that offers a peek through to a fire-engine red table lamp that hails from the fashion world, here are 15 of our favorite finds.
Mix rug by Kristine Five Melvær for Heymat
The soft pastel hues of the 1970s return as a new colorway for the
color blocks of the 100% recycled plastic and nitrile rubber Mix rug
by Kristine Five Melvær for Norwegian rugmaker Heymat. Teklan is the result of a collaboration with colorist, designer, and photographer Tekla Evelina Severin.
Fragment sofa system by Todd Bracher for Fogia
Is your favorite spot occupied? Ingenious gaps between the backrests of a solid beech and metal frame allow you to see through the Fragment modular sofa by Todd Bracher for Fogia. Minimal in form not comfort, it’s at ease in both a contract and residential setting.
Koku side table by Norm Architects for Fogia
On a studio trip to the former workshop of George Nakashima, the principals behind Norm Architects noted that the celebrated Japanese-American architect, designer, and craftsman often incorporated slabs of wood. With a base distinguished by one sturdy slab of oak combined with metal, likewise so does the solid oak and metal Koku side table by Norm Architects for Fogia.
L’Art Plissé table lamp by Folkform and Roland Hjort
The textile pleats of the fashion world gave rise to the cherry red textile L’Art Plissé table lamp by Folkform and fashion designer Roland Hjort. It was featured in the exhibition “Inside Swedish Design.”
BAM! sofa by Massproductions
Channeling block-shaped geometry yet concealing the comfort of recycled goose and duck feathers, the armrest-free form of the BAM! sofa by Massproductions “looks like something that could come out of a Lichtenstein painting,” notes the company’s co-founder and lead designer Chris Martin. A wink at sturdy Gothic buttresses, legs are upholstered in the same material as seat and back. It’s available in three sizes.
Hop Studio Line vase by Sebastian Herkner for Rosenthal
Asymmetrically layered rings—think the Michelin man—are behind porcelain Hop by Sebastian Herkner for Rosenthal.
Offered as a vase in two different sizes or as a bowl, the piece is the most recent addition to the Rosenthal Studio Line, the brand’s limited-edition collection which now celebrates its 60th anniversary with 60 vases in 12 hues.
String Pocket by Nisse Strinning for String Furniture
The String Pocket shelving system by Nisse Strinning for String Furniture is now offered in a fresh new hue—sage. Its two wall-mounted panels and three shelves are available in lacquered MDF or powder-coated steel.
Croissant by Illum Wikkelsø for Gubi
Like the buttery French breakfast pastry, the Croissant seating collection by Illum Wikkelsø for Gubi offers indulgence in its curved embrace. Consisting of a lounge chair and three-seater sofa upholstered in fabric or leather with hand-stitched flat piping, the collection is a relaunch of an archival design from 1962.
Cumulonimbus collection by Julia Hager Jutterström
Julia Hager Jutterström studied a thunderstorm’s dense, vertical cumulonimbus clouds for her burned wood and welded aluminum Cumulonimbus collection—featured in the virtual edition of the annual Greenhouse exhibition, honoring young Scandinavian design talent.
Saddle rocking stool by Yingjie Liang
With two heights, both children and adults can rock to their hearts delight on the linoleum and birch plywood Saddle rocking stool by Yingjie Liang, also featured in the Greenhouse exhibition.
Big Talk by Adam Goodrum for Blå Station
Snake-like geometry and graduated velvet textile swatches made the molded foam Big Talk modular sofa by Adam Goodrum the talk of the town following “Knit!,” an exhibition presented by Kvadrat during 3daysofdesign in Copenhagen last September. The minds behind Blå Station took note—and now the statement piece is available to a wider audience.
Honken X40 and X46 by Thomas Bernstrand for Blå Station
A sturdy addition to diverse settings ranging from home to conference room to restaurant, Honken X40 and Honken X46 are easy chairs in two heights by Thomas Bernstrand. The latest addition to Blå Station’s Honken seating family, the lacquered chair has a metal mesh seat, a gently inclined backrest, and slight bounce in its steel frame.
Recycled Glass Tiles by Form Us With Love
Finding new life for decontaminated glass on an industrial scale, these recycled glass tiles by Form Us With Love are designed to be sustainable yet commercially viable. They’re featured in the Swedish design studio’s latest book, “Problems,” which takes an in-depth look at the process towards designing novel solutions.
Cloud table by Louise Liljencrantz for Veermakers
There’s a cloud in your coffee—actually that’s the walnut Cloud coffee table by Louise Liljencrantz and one of the first pieces in the freshly launched Veermakers brand. A collaboration between Liljencrantz and woodworkers K.F.K. Master Cabinet-Makers focusing on craft, Veermakers is a collection of limited-edition furniture, lighting, mirrors, and objects.
Pavo lamp by Broberg & Ridderstråle for Klong
A lampshade in milky white recycled acrylic creates a fan silhouette for the Pavo table lamp by Broberg & Ridderstråle for Klong. Paired with a solid anodized-aluminum base, Pavo is a design object even when off.
