Designer Desire: Maria Holmer Dahlgren

Montage of Maria Holmer Dahlgren designs

Maria Holmer Dahlgren is a Swedish graphic designer with a distinctive, bold use of colour, shape and font in her creations.

About her city range she says:

The products are my answer to soulless souvenirs of poor quality that look the same wherever you are. Lots of tingles or moose made in China. My souvenirs are filled with personal strawberries and can easily be packed into the cabin bag, flat and durable.

They should be practical utility items at a reasonable price. Folksy and strong without being trendy. Made in Sweden by family businesses. In addition, they are tributes to these cities and my hope is that all the residents of those cities should feel pride, because we live in a fantastic country. The more you travel out into the world and gain perspective, the more you understand it.

She has collaborated with the likes of IKEA and the Tate. Her designs have been used on an array of homewares; serving trays, posters, postcards, notebooks and textiles.

It’s possible to find a few examples of her work available on Abe Books and eBay.

 

 
 
 
 
 
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All image credits: © Maria Holmer Dahlgren

Designer Desire: Vivianna Torun Bülow-Hübe

Montage of Portrait of Vivianna Torun Bülow-Hübe designs

Vivianna Torun Bülow-Hübe (1927-2004) was a Swedish metalsmith and jewellery designer. She worked primarily in silver with semi-precious stones such as amethyst, agate, labradorite, quartz, rock crystal, mother-of-pearl, abalone and other shells.

In 1951, Torun Bülow-Hübe became the first female silversmith in Sweden with her own workshop; she worked there until 1956, when she immigrated to France. She lived and designed in France for 12 years, meeting Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque and Henri Matisse. She left France, moving first to Germany and then to Indonesia. After her diagnosis with leukaemia in 2002, she moved to Denmark to be with her daughter.

In the mid 1950s, she began a lasting relationship with the Danish firm, Georg Jensen which continued up until her death in 2004. They continue to produce some of her designs including the ‘Vivianna’ wristwatch (shown in the montage above) which was first created in 1962.

Her work has been bought and worn by a string of celebrities; Brigitte Bardot, Ingrid Bergman, Billie Holiday, Pablo Picasso and Duke Ellington.

Torun Bülow-Hübe’s work can be found in the permanent collections of a number of international museums and galleries; MoMA in New York, the Swedish National Museum, Stockholm, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Montreal, the Louvre in Paris, the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths in London and the Pinakothek der Moderne, Munich.

In 1992, Torun was awarded the Prince Eugen medal by King Carl XVI Gustav of Sweden. The medal is bestowed for outstanding artistic achievement.

Also in 1992, Georg Jensen in Copenhagen held an exhibition commemorating 25 years of Torun’s association with the company; 45 years of working with silver and her 65th birthday.

In addition, that year, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris held a retrospective of her work.

You can buy vintage examples of her designs on eBay and Etsy.

Portrait of Vivianna Torun Bülow-Hübecredit

Additional image credits:
1st Dibs | Bukowskis

Designer Desire: Pierre Forssell

Montage of Pierre Forssell metalware designs

Pierre Forssell (1925-2004) was a Swedish metalsmith who worked primarily in brass and gold plate. His output was very modern and masculine; pieces include candle-holders, wall & ceiling lamps, vases, cigarette lighters and an exquisite decanter and cup set (shown above).

From the 1950s to the 1970s, he designed many pieces for Skultuna (where he was Creative Director), some of which are still in production to this day.

Pierre Forssell also worked for Gense where he was designing cutlery including the relaunched Retro Collection (shown in the montage image above). First designed in the 1950s, the range includes salt & pepper shakers, cocktail forks (similar to the ‘spork‘) and salad servers. They are available on Amazon.

Vintage examples of his designs come up for sale on 1stDibs, eBay, Etsy, Pamona, Vinterior and on Scandinavian auction sites such as Bukowskis.

Portrait of Pierre Forssellcredit

Additional image credits:
1stDibs | Bukowskis

Designer Desire: Sven Fristedt

Montage of Sven Fristedt textile designs | H is for Home

Sven Fristedt is one of the most successful and prolific textile designers to come out of Sweden in the mid-20th century.

Since the mid-1960s, Sven Fristedt has designed dozens of fabric designs; primarily for IKEA and Borås Wäfveri. He began at Borås in 1965 and remained there until 1990, acting as the factory’s artistic leader between 1975 and 1977. Plexus, (the design is shown above – a repeating starburst-type pattern) which was the company’s first silk-screen print was also his first commercial design. It proved to be hugely successful. Amongst his other output for the company include Frutto, Frots i trädgården, Mitt Zoo, Oppo, Ormen, Pompelona and Päråna.

He designed for IKEA from 1968 to 1985 as is responsible for design lines such as ALFI, GLADA BLAS, MYRTEN and SKYAR.

In 2013, he collaborated with Hemtex, producing a gorgeous design with a repeating pear motif.

In a 2014 interview with the magazine, Scandinavian Retro, he shared:

Naturally I was influenced by others. Marimekko did fantastically dramatic things, and Josef Frank did some great pieces for Svenskt Tenn. I discovered the designer Ken Scott at a trade fair in Milan. He designed some really beautiful patterns for Falconetto… I am surprised about how many good things I did, at least there’s nothing I’m ashamed of.

Because they were produced in such large runs, his designs are readily available on eBay and Etsy.

Portrait of Sven Fristedtcredit

Additional image credits:

Bukowskis