Modernity

Pair of wall lamps, designed by Alvar Aalto for Valaistustyö, Finland, 1950s Brass and lacquered steel. Very rare example. Dimensions: Total depth: 50 cm / 1' 6 1/2" D: 30 cm / 9 ...

Stool designed by Mogens Lassen for K. Thomsen, Denmark, 1942. Teak. Stamped. Model presented at The Copenhagen Cabinetmakers' Guild Exhibition at Designmuseum Denmark, 1942. H: ...

Table lamp model 2434 designed by Josef Frank for Svenskt Tenn, Sweden, 1939. Polished and lacquered brass with fabric shade. Dimensions: H: 58.5 cm / 1' 11" W: 18 cm / 7" D: 52 cm...

Rug, designed by Impi Sotavalta, Finland, 1930s. Flat weave rug. Dimensions: L: 299 cm / 9’ 9 1/4’’ W: 190 cm / 6’ 2 3/4’’

‘The Propeller Stool’ model 8783 designed by Kaare Klint for Rud. Rasmussens Cabinetmakers, Denmark, 1930. Canvas and ash. Signed. Kaare Klint was the father of Scandinavian moder...

Wall sculpture designed by Jörgen Larsen, Denmark. 1970's. Forged iron. Measurements: L: 182 cm/ 5' 11 1/2'' H: 84 cm/ 33 1/2'' D: 14 cm/ 5 1/2''

Chest of drawers model 146 designed by Carl-Axel Acking for Svenska Möbelfabriken, Sweden, 1940s. Elm with alder root drawers, brass. Marked "SM No. 146" Measurements: H: 94 cm/ ...

Occasional table/ Bench model 5274, designed by Börge Mogensen for Fredericia Stolefabrik, Denmark. 1950's. Oak and cane. Measurements: W: 69 cm/ 27" D: 69 cm/ 27" H: 35 cm/ 13 3/4"

Vase Fabula by Per B Sundberg for Orrefors, Sweden. 2003. Unique. H: 22 cm / 8 3/4''

Vase “Fabula” designed by Per B. Sundberg for Orrefors, Sweden. 1998. Paper and glass.

Vase by Kyllikki Salmenhaara for Arabia, Finland, 1950s. Stoneware. Dimensions: H: 20 cm/ 7 7/8'' D: 18 cm/ 7 1/8'' Salmenhaara began to study at the Department of Ceramics of the Central School of Applied Arts under Elsa Elenius...

Pair of bedside tables, anonymous for DUX, Sweden. 1960s. Cane, rattan and teak. The colonial-style combination of cane, rattan, and teak makes this Scandinavian bedside table desi...

Ceiling lamp model A332 “Beehive” designed by Alvar Aalto for Valaistustyo, Finland, 1953. Painted aluminium and polished brass. Early six tier version. Stamped, 'VAlAISTUSTYO A33...

Oak and teak. Measurements: L: 76.5 cm / 2’ 6” W: 102 cm / 3’ 4” H: 73 cm / 2’ 4 3/4" L with extension: 198 cm / 6’ 4”. Hans J. Wegner is the father of Danish design and is well ...

Side/bedside table, anonymous, Denmark. 1960's. Wenge. Dimensions: H: 50 cm/ 19 3/4" L: 50 cm/ 19 3/4" D: 40 cm/ 15 3/4"

Triptych, anonymous, Finland, 1960s. Wood relief. Size of each frame: H: 60 cm/ 23 5/8" W: 60 cm/ 23 5/8" Provenance: Stora Enso's head quarter in Helsinki.

Table, anonymous, for Nordiska Kompaniet, Sweden. 1930's. Black lacquered wood with engraved pewter. Dimensions: H: 55 cm/ 1' 9 21/32'' W: 49.5 cm/ 1...

Vase designed by Per B. Sundberg for Orrefors, Sweden. 1990's. Glass. Dimensions: H: 28 cm/ 11'' Per B. Sundberg grew up in Huddinge, south of Stockholm, where he early showed interest in creative expression, including in textile. Sundberg applied and was accepted to the pottery division at Capellagården in Vickleby 1983-85. In the years 1985-1992 he studied glass and ceramics at Konstfack in Stockholm, with a break in 1988 to study at the Pilchuck Glass School in Seattle. Per B Sundberg altered the course of Swedish design in the 1990s with the advent of new techniques and the creation of experimental...

This painting, 'Fra Coma til Egba', was executed in 1977 by Kai Führer and forms part of his sustained investigation into abstract geometric composition within post-war Danish art. T...

Occasional table designed by Josef Frank for Svenskt Tenn, Sweden. 1950s. Mahogany. H: 45 cm L: 80 cm D: 40 cm Josef Frank was a true European, he was also a pioneer of what would become classic 20th century Swedish design and the “Scandinavian Design Style”. Austrian- born Frank started his design career as an architect after having trained at the Technische Hochschule in Vienna between 1903 and 1910. After his training he went on to teach at Kunstgewerbeschule (The Viennese School of Arts and crafts) where he developed and espoused the new school of modernist thinking towards Architecture and Design that was coming to fruition in Vienna at the time. He also went on to lead the Vienna Werkbund throughout the 1920s. This was a truly progressive group of Architects and Designers who set about improving the daily lives of Austrian people through modernist design and architecture in partnership with Arts and Crafts ideals and construction. Frank’s leadership of the Werkbund had already cemented his place at the forefront of European design. Frank’s time in Vienna was typified by his design for the “Die Wohnung” exhibition of the Deutscher Werkbund in Stuttgart, 1927 where he exhibited along side his contemporaries at the forefront of design, such as the likes of Le Corbusier and Walter Gropius. Here he showed a specially designed pair of flat-roofed reinforced concrete houses in what is now seen as a typical modernist style. What separated Frank’s house from the other 32 houses of the exhibition was the interior and furniture inside the building. It was described as “Neo-Classical” and filled with an eclectic mix of period pieces, modern design and pieces designed by Frank himself that seemed to cross the two worlds. This was a complete opposite direction to that which his fellow Architects were travelling in with their pared back and angular aesthetics. Frank said of his own work: “The house is not a work of art, simply a place where one lives,” and by this reasoning Frank rejected the regimental mechanisation of the living space that his contemporaries believed in, instead he set about creating congenial and spontaneous interiors. Frank’s practice saw him placing the bright colours and the soft forms of nature back into the furnishings and interiors that he thought modernism sorely mist. Frank, along with Oskar Walch set up Haus und Garten in Vienna in 1925. This was Frank’s first commercial foray into furniture and home furnishings and the company went on to become the most influential furnishing house in Vienna with a riotous depth of colour and interesting shapes becoming the trademark of their design. However this success was to come to an end with rise of Nazism in Vienna in the early 1930’s. Frank was Jewish, and he and his wife Anna decided they would leave Vienna for her motherland: Sweden, in 1933. Frank continued to design for Haus and Garten, visiting Vienna occasionally and designing the pieces that would continue to be the company’s best...

Painting by Harry Booström, Sweden. 1953. Oil on panel Signed: Booström Measuremnets: H: 129.5 cm/ 4' 3 1/4" W: 96.5 cm/ 3' 2 1/2" D: 8 cm/ 3" Provenance: William and Maud Appelq...

Painting by Harry Booström, Sweden, 1954. Oil on panel. Signed: Booström Measurements: H: 69.2 cm/ 2' 3 1/2" W: 85 cm/ 2' 9 3/4" D: 8 cm/ 3" Provenance: William and Maud Appelqui...

Painting ‘No. II’ by Harry Booström, Sweden. 1953. Oil on panel. Measurements: H: 89 cm/ 2' 11" W: 119 cm/ 3' 10 7/8" Provenance: William and Maud Ap...

This paired set of relief paintings, titled 'Around Malevitch' and created in 1976 by Poul Pedersen, offers a measured and intellectually rigorous meditation on modernist legacy and ...

Painting by Sven Hansson, Sweden. Oil on canvas. Dimensions: H: 120 cm/ 3' 12" W: 90 cm/ 2' 12 1/4" Provenance: the estate of the artist. Working in a purely geometric, non-fig...

Painting by Sven Hansson, Sweden. 1979. Painted wood relief on board. Dimensions: H: 42 cm/ 16 1/2" W: 51 cm/ 20'' Provenance: the estate of the artist. Working in a purely geome...

Painting by Sven Hansson, Sweden, 1985. Oil on canvas. Provenance: from the collection of the artist's family. Signed and dated: "S. Hansson K. 1985" Dimensions: H: 89.5 cm/ 2' ...

Painting by Sven Hansson, Sweden, 1982. Oil on canvas. Signed and dated "Sven Hansson 1982". Dimensions: H: 95 cm/ 3' 1 3/8" W: 130 cm/ 4' 3 1/8" Provenance: The collection of t...

Oil on board. Dated and signed. Measurements: H: 71 cm/ 2' 4 1/2'' W: 120 cm/ 3' 11 3/4''. Working in a purely geometric, non-figurative style, Sven Hansson was a Swedish painter...

Vase Fabula and Ariel designed by Per B. Sundberg for Orrefors, Sweden. 2004. Glass. Dimensions: H: 20 cm/ 7 7/8" D: 17 cm/ 6 2/3" Unique. Signed Orrefors 9663-87 Per B Sundberg. Per B. Sundberg grew up in Huddinge, south of Stockholm, where he early showed interest in creative expression, including in textile. Sundberg applied and was accepted to the pottery division at Capellagården in Vickleby 1983-85. In the years 1985-1992 he studied glass and ceramics at Konstfack in Stockholm, with a break in 1988 to study at the Pilchuck Glass School in Seattle. Per B Sundberg altered the course of Swedish design in the 1990s with the advent of new techniques and the creation of experimental ceramics...

Vase designed by Per B. Sundberg for Orrefors, Sweden. 2003. Glass. Dimensions: H: 27 cm/ 10 2/3" D: 18 cm/ 7" Unique. Signed Orrefors 9454-87 Per B Sundberg. Per B. Sundberg grew up in Huddinge, south of Stockholm, where he early showed interest in creative expression, including in textile. Sundberg applied and was accepted to the pottery division at Capellagården in Vickleby 1983-85. In the years 1985-1992 he studied glass and ceramics at Konstfack in Stockholm, with a break in 1988 to study at the Pilchuck Glass School in Seattle. Per B Sundberg altered the course of Swedish design in the 1990s with the advent of new techniques and the creation of experimental ceramics...

Vase designed by Per B. Sundberg for Orrefors, Sweden. 2004. Glass. Dimensions: H: 22 cm/ 8 2/3" D: 20 cm/ 7 7/8" Unique. Signed Orrefors 9450-87 Per B Sundberg. Per B. Sundberg grew up in Huddinge, south of Stockholm, where he early showed interest in creative expression, including in textile. Sundberg applied and was accepted to the pottery division at Capellagården in Vickleby 1983-85. In the years 1985-1992 he studied glass and ceramics at Konstfack in Stockholm, with a break in 1988 to study at the Pilchuck Glass School in Seattle. Per B Sundberg altered the course of Swedish design in the 1990s with the advent of new techniques and the creation of experimental ceramics...

Rug “Ursula” designed by Märta Måås-Fjetterström for MMF AB, Sweden, 1935. Handwoven wool. Measurements: L 270 cm/ 8' 10 ¾” W 164 cm/ 5' 5”. Märta Måås-Fjet...

Cabinet, anonymous, Denmark, 1950s. Oregon pine. This charming piece is an exquisite example of Danish cabinetmaking. The visible corner joints and the stretcher’s through mortise...

Edvin Öhrström’s 'Tjurhuvud' (“Bull’s Head”) is among his most recognised works and an important example of twentieth-century Swedish glass art. Created...

Armchair, anonymous, Sweden, 1940s. Fabric and birch. Measurements: H: 100 cm / 3’ 3 1/2’’ W: 66 cm / 2’ 2’’ D: 92 cm / 3’ 1/4’’ SH: 47 cm / 18 1/2’’ AH: 59 cm / 23 1/4’’

Set of five tables designed by Palle Suenson for J. C. A. Jensen, Denmark. 1930's - 1940's. Solid Bangkok teak. Measurements: H: 72,5 cm/ 2' 5" L: 105 cm/ 3' 5 3/4" W: 73 cm/ 2' 5 ...

Occasional table designed by Helge Vestergaard Jensen, Denmark, 1954. Unique. Manufactured by Thysen Nielsen. Ebonised wood and original clear glass. Exhibited at the Cabinet Make...

This sculptural vase by Liisa Hallamaa, created for Arabia in the 1950s, represents a compelling example of mid-century Nordic ceramics within the broader tradition of Scandinavian M...

Coffee table designed by Frode Holm for Illums Bolighus, Denmark. 1950's. Rosewood. Measurements: H: 56 cm/ 22'' L: 121 cm/ 4' W: 61 c...

Pair of armchairs model 3758 A designed by Kaare Klint for Rud. Rasmussen, Denmark. 1927. Mahogany and leather. Model designed in 1927 for the Danish Museum of Decorative Art prod...

Framed Object ‘Ikonocasi’ by Rune Hagberg, Sweden, 1980s. Mixed media. Signed. Measurements: H: 105 cm / 3’ 5 1/3’’ W: 50.5 cm / 20’’ D: 10 cm / 4’’. Born in Uppsala, Sweden, Ha...

Object by Rune Hagberg, Sweden, 1970s. Mixed Media Measurements: H: 32.5 cm/ 1' D: 11 cm/ 4 1/3" Signed R.H Born in Uppsala, Sweden, Hagberg became heavily influenced by Eastern ...

Framed object by Rune Hagberg, Sweden, 1970s. Mixed-media. Measurements: H: 77 cm/ 2' 6 ¾” W: 52 cm/ 20 ½” D: 8 cm/ 3 3/8”. Born in Uppsala, Sweden, ...

Set of ten dining chairs designed by Aino Aalto for Artek, Finland, 1950s. Birch and cane. Very rare model. Measurements: H: 74 cm/ 29" W: 58 cm/ 22 3/4" D: 42 cm/ 16 1/2" Prove...

Sweden, 1980's. Mixed media. Measurements: H: 82 cm / 2' 8" L: 49 cm / 19 1/3’’ W: 10 cm / 3 1/6’’. Born in Uppsala, Sweden, Hagberg became heavily influenced by Eastern calligraphy throughout his life – and developed a spontaneous sign painting style with a strong concentration on a select amount of characters rooted in Zen Buddhism...

Occasional table designed by Josef Frank for Svenskt Tenn, Sweden, 1950s. Mahogany. Measurements: H: 60 cm/ 23 1/2'' Length when extened: 104 cm/ 3' 5'' D: 54 cm/ 21 1/2''   Jose...

Bedside table model 914 designed by Josef Frank for Svenskt Tenn, Sweden, 1950s. Mahogany veneer and brass handle. Josef Frank’s elegant bedside table model 914 with sophisticated brass handles is one of Svenskt Tenn’s timeless classics. It works very well combined with modern or antique pieces. The overall simplicity of form and use of luxurious wood are characteristic of Josef Frank. L: 65 cm W: 40 cm H: 55 cm Josef Frank was a true European, he was also a pioneer of what would become classic 20th century Swedish design and the “Scandinavian Design Style”. Austrian- born Frank started his design career as an architect after having trained at the Technische Hochschule in Vienna between 1903 and 1910. After his training he went on to teach at Kunstgewerbeschule (The Viennese School of Arts and crafts) where he developed and espoused the new school of modernist thinking towards Architecture and Design that was coming to fruition in Vienna at the time. He also went on to lead the Vienna Werkbund throughout the 1920s. This was a truly progressive group of Architects and Designers who set about improving the daily lives of Austrian people through modernist design and architecture in partnership with Arts and Crafts ideals and construction. Frank’s leadership of the Werkbund had already cemented his place at the forefront of European design. Frank’s time in Vienna was typified by his design for the “Die Wohnung” exhibition of the Deutscher Werkbund in Stuttgart, 1927 where he exhibited along side his contemporaries at the forefront of design, such as the likes of Le Corbusier and Walter Gropius. Here he showed a specially designed pair of flat-roofed reinforced concrete houses in what is now seen as a typical modernist style. What separated Frank’s house from the other 32 houses of the exhibition was the interior and furniture inside the building. It was described as “Neo-Classical” and filled with an eclectic mix of period pieces, modern design and pieces designed by Frank himself that seemed to cross the two worlds. This was a complete opposite direction to that which his fellow Architects were travelling in with their pared back and angular aesthetics. Frank said of his own work: “The house is not a work of art, simply a place where one lives,” and by this reasoning Frank rejected the regimental mechanisation of the living space that his contemporaries believed in, instead he set about creating congenial and spontaneous interiors. Frank’s practice saw him placing the bright colours and the soft forms of nature back into the furnishings and interiors that he thought modernism sorely mist. Frank, along with Oskar Walch set up Haus und Garten in Vienna in 1925. This was Frank’s first commercial foray into furniture and home furnishings and the company went on to become the most influential furnishing house in Vienna with a riotous depth of colour and interesting shapes becoming the trademark of their design. However this success was to come to an end with rise of Nazism in Vienna in the early 1930’s. Frank was Jewish, and he and his wife Anna decided they would leave Vienna for her motherland: Sweden, in 1933. Frank continued to design for Haus and Garten, visiting Vienna occasionally and designing the pieces that would continue to be the company’s best...

Vase “Veckla” designed by Stig Lindberg for Gustavsberg, Sweden, 1940s. Ceramic. Measurements: H: 36 cm/ 1' 4" D :17 cm/ 6 3/4". Stig Lindberg’s “Veckla...

Floor lamp model 2564 designed by Josef Frank for Svenskt Tenn, Sweden, 1950s. White lacquered brass and Lacquered Paper. Stamped. This elegant brass floor lamp is adjustable in h...

Stig Lindberg’s “Veckla” vases belong to a limited series of sculptural stoneware works produced by Gustavsberg from the late 1940s into the 1950s. The name “Veckla,” meaning “folded...

Table Annika designed by Bruno Mathsson for Karl Mathsson, Sweden. 1936. Elm top and birch legs. Measurements: H: 65 cm / 2' 2" D: 95 cm / 3' 1 7/8" This round “Annika” occasional table was manufactured in 1967 and designed in 1936; it is made of birch with a smooth Oregon pine top. Bruno Mathsson created various iterations of his “Annika” model — they come in three shapes with different wood combinations and various heights. They can be round with three legs, square with four legs, or rectangular with six legs, allowing exciting and contrasting combinations when grouped. While the design aesthetic is delicate, the table is very well-made because of the strong plywood. Bruno Mathsson’s love for nature pervades all his designs — he frequently slept outside in the forest or his garden on a specially designed foldable bed. His furniture shapes, particularly the legs, bring bull's horns or insects to mind. Mathsson was one of the most important Swedish designers of the 20th century. He was a contemporary of Alvar Aalto and Marcel Breuer, all of whom had already experimented with bent plywood during the 1930s. Karl Mathsson, Bruno Mathsson's father, was the fifth generation in a family of master cabinet makers. He owned a furniture manufacturing company that produced the earlier pieces; later, they founded "Mathsson International”. The stamp indicates the manufacturing date and, sometimes, the design date. Bruno Mathsson often gave his furniture Swedish woman...

Side table designed by Severin Hansen Jr. for Haslev Möbelsnedkeri. Denmark, 1950s. Rosewood. Stamped. Measures: H: 50 cm W: 50 cm D: 35 cm.

Handwoven wool. Measures: L: 330 cm / 10’ 9 3/4" W: 196 cm / 6’ 5 1/2".

Vase, tulip designed by Nils Landberg for Orrefors, Sweden, 1957. Glass. Measurements H: 44.5 cm/ 1' 6".

Serving trolley model 756 designed by Josef Frank for Svenskt Tenn, Sweden, 1940s. Veneered walnut and brass. H: 65 cm W: 53 cm Width when fully extended: 89 cm D: 80 cm Josef Fr...

Copper and brass. Measures: L: 227 cm/ 7' 5 3/4" W: 21 cm/ 8 1/4" Provenance: The member's club at the Myllykoski paper mill, Finland. Paavo Tynell's office was responsible for th...

Line drawing America by Alberto Longoni, Italy, 1965. Ink on paper. Measures: H 97 cm/ 38 1/4'' W 65 cm/ 25 1/2''.

Lacquered steel frame with inlayed linoleum top. Measures: L 120 cm/ 3' 12" W 51 cm/ 20" H 47 cm/ 1' 7".

Cabinet, anonymous, Sweden, 1940s. Mahogany, beech, marble and brass. Dimensions: H: 70 cm / 2' 3 1/2'' W: 71 cm / 2' 4'' D: 42 cm / 16 1/2''