Swedish Grace Daybed by Carl Malmsten
View Similar Items
Swedish Grace Daybed by Carl Malmsten
About the Item
- Creator:Carl Malmsten (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 29.75 in (75.57 cm)Width: 82.5 in (209.55 cm)Depth: 31.5 in (80.01 cm)Seat Height: 19 in (48.26 cm)
- Style:Art Deco (Of the Period)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1920s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:New York, NY
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU107582696892
Carl Malmsten
Carl Malmsten, a prominent furniture designer and educator associated with Swedish modernism, enjoyed immense popularity for his shapely sofas and armchairs in luscious color palettes. Malmsten believed that light — much like our eyes and bodies — doesn’t like to bump into sharp objects. Smooth edges, on the other hand, are kinder to the eye and and to our touch, and allow light to softly bounce off surfaces. Malmsten felt that if his furniture didn’t “serve well” in the home, it had no business being there.
Malmsten’s career essentially began in 1915, when his submissions for a competition to furnish the new Stockholm City Hall were first- and second-place prize winners. In the 1920s, his profile soared. He won a prize at the International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts — the show that brought the Art Deco style to worldwide attention — and quickly became one of the most sought-after designers of commercial seating in Sweden.
Malmsten was soon contracted to design chairs, tables and other furniture for the Stockholm Concert Hall, the Swedish Institute in Rome and the Waldorf Astoria hotel in New York. His famous Art Nouveau-influenced Stadshusstolen chair, designed for Stockholm City Hall in 1916, is a highlight of the city’s recently opened Museum of Furniture Studies. Malmsten expanded into interior design and created a luxurious, well-appointed living room in the palace of then-Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf and his bride, Crown Princess Louise.
In the 1930s, Malmsten clashed with critics when he voiced his opposition to functionalism. Like Danish modernist Kaare Klint, he favored using quality local materials and prized traditional craftsmanship. Malmsten’s furniture draws on graceful neoclassical influences, and he said that extreme functionalism contributed to “sterile” interiors — while the curving contours of his work may share ground with furniture designed by Alvar Aalto or Bruno Mathsson, Malmsten differed with Bauhaus eminences and some Scandinavian modernists on their prioritization of functionalism.
For an exhibition in 1956 at the Röhsska Museum in Gothenburg, Malmsten designed furniture that was intended for mass production — and his striking designs began to make their way into middle-class Swedish homes owing to Malmsten’s partnerships with manufacturers such as O.H. Sjögren. Until then, he had built his pieces at the school he founded in the 1930s or had them made by artisans at several small local workshops.
Malmsten founded a number of schools for design and collaborated with other designers who shared his philosophy of “hand and mind in creative collaboration.” These included the esteemed textile artist Märta Måås Fjetterström, whose pieces he included in exhibits and even his own home.
On 1stDibs, find vintage Carl Malmsten seating, tables, cabinets and more.
- Fine Regency Black Painted and Gilt Daybed in the Manner of George SmithBy George SmithLocated in New York, NYThis daybed stands out for its impressive scale. With outward scrolling upholstered side and downswept back within an ebonized surround with gilt acanthus and lotus leaf decoration; ...Category
Antique Early 19th Century English Regency Chaise Longues
MaterialsGiltwood, Paint
- A Regency Style Ebonised and Upholstered SetteeLocated in New York, NYA reupholstered Regency style settee in a vintage YSL fabric.Category
20th Century English Regency Settees
MaterialsBrass
- A Swedish Black Lacquer CommodeBy Nordiska KompanietLocated in New York, NYFitted with three drawers on four tapered brass feet. Each drawer features a brass-outlined escutcheon and ring pulls. Bearing Nordiska Kompaniet label.Category
Vintage 1950s Swedish Mid-Century Modern Commodes and Chests of Drawers
MaterialsBrass
- Neoclassical Swedish Beaded Crystal ChandelierLocated in New York, NYOf elegant basket form festooned with crystal garlands and hanging from a chains beaded with varying sized crystal beads, set below a cut glass collar hung with cut crystal pendants....Category
Antique Late 19th Century Swedish Neoclassical Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsCrystal
- Swedish Empire Cut Crystal and Bronze Five-Light ChandelierLocated in New York, NYWith a five outscrolled electrified candlearms issuing from a bronze ring hung with crystal beaded swags and drop pendants, hung from four chains suspended from a disc issuing arched cut glass pendants; with canopy...Category
Antique 1820s Swedish Empire Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsCrystal, Bronze
- 'Ispahan‘ wallpaper by Papier Français, collection BNF N°1By Papier FrançaisLocated in New York, NYRepeat: 70 cm / 27.6 in Founded in 2019, the French wallpaper brand Papier Francais is defined by the rediscovery, restoration, and revival of iconic ...Category
2010s French Neoclassical Wallpaper
MaterialsPaper
- Swedish Leather Samsas Round Sofa by Carl MalmstenBy Carl MalmstenLocated in London, GBAn absolutely stunning and iconic design, this is the Samsas Round sofa. It was designed by Carl Malmsten back in the 1920’s. This model was made in Sweden in the late 20th century b...Category
Vintage 1970s Swedish Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsLeather, Wood
- Seso Daybed by CollectorLocated in Geneve, CHSeso daybed by Collector Designer: Davide Monopoli Materials: Upholstered in Siege black fabric. Solid oak wood structure. Dimensions: W 190 x D 61 x H ...Category
2010s Portuguese Modern Daybeds
MaterialsFabric, Oak
$7,688 - Carl Malmsten "Samsas" SofaBy Carl MalmstenLocated in Los Angeles, CACarl Malmsten "Samsas" sofa produced by O. H. Sjogren. Store formerly known as ARTFUL DODGER INCCategory
Vintage 1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Sofas
MaterialsBirch, Fabric
- Antique French Iron Campaign Style DaybedLocated in Sheffield, MAAdd glamour and style with this Napoleon III cast iron lounging day bed to any room. Create your own 24" x 74" seating area with a mattress, seat cushion and decorative pillows to ma...Category
Antique 19th Century French Napoleon III Daybeds
MaterialsIron
- Black Leather Vintage Mid Century Daybed by Johannes Spalt Austria, circa 1959By Johannes SpaltLocated in Vienna, ATEarly daybed designed by Viennese architect Johannes Spalt and executed by Franz Wittmann, Austria, circa 1959 Very easy to open with one hand and to change the settee into a daybed....Category
Vintage 1950s Austrian Mid-Century Modern Settees
MaterialsMetal
- Italian Cherry Foliage Carved Daybed, Circa 1780Located in Hollywood, SCItalian Cherry Day bed with carved scrolled headboards depicting floral and medallion motif and terminating on turned ringed foliage legs. . Late 18th...Category
Antique 18th Century and Earlier Italian Daybeds
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
In Christopher Spitzmiller’s New York Homes, His Love of Dogs Is on Full Display
The ceramist, designer and gentleman farmer tells us about the collection of antique dog art he has spread across a New York City apartment and a Greek Revival farmhouse in the Hudson Valley.
High-Society Hijinks Fill the Imagination of Illustrator Tug Rice
The Pennsylvania-born, New York–based artist's whimsical creations affectionately satirize the foibles of his fellow Upper East Siders.