By Axel Larsson
Located in Utrecht, NL
Axel Larsson was an incredibly productive Swedish furniture architect and designer with a more than 50-year long career. This armchair is a rarity, despite Larsson being most well-known for his furniture series designed for and mass-produced by SMF Bodafors.
The furniture that was manufactured at Svenska Möbelfabrikerna in Bodafors is of fine quality and was made in large numbers, however, Axel Larsson also designed furniture for individual carpenters in Stockholm. These were made in small numbers and are very unusual, and this armchair may be one of these designs. The exciting design of the birch structure immediately stands out for its unusual details, such as the framed back cushion and the seat’s connection to the arms. There is a clear emphasis on comfort, from the tilted back to the sculpted, wide armrests. The extremely soft sheepskin adheres to the lines of the seat and back, creating a crisp and sleek appearance. The beech wood frames the upholstery in an equally neat way, with visible screws in the back. Swedish Modern style is delicately scaled, using tapering legs and clever but simple solutions as seen on this chair as well. The back legs have a beautiful curve created by the back rest’s line, and horizontal stretchers that connect them to the front legs. The armrests grasp the seat and stretchers with a sculpted “hand”.
Swedish Modern, subtitled “A Movement Towards Sanity in Design”, was actually coined by a critic at the 1939 Fair...
Category
Mid-20th Century Swedish Scandinavian Modern Axel Larsson Armchairs