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Those who appreciate the clean lines and simple beauty of Swedish modern furniture likely already know the name of Bruno Mathsson. He was one of the most influential figures in furniture design through most of the 20th Century. Born in Varnamo, Sweden in 1907, he was active almost until his death in 1988.

Bruno Mathsson was destined to be a furniture (möbler) maker from birth, coming from a family with five continuous generations of fine furniture designers and makers. As a child he acquired the cabinetmaking skills and intrinsic feel for the nature of various woods that would serve him well in his own career. His skills first attracted mentors who supplied him with advice and loaned books to increase his technical knowledge, and later earned him a scholarship to study his craft.

Mathsson was especially drawn to the mechanics of furniture so that the technical design was as refined and advances as the appearance. He wanted to create work that was as strong, functional and efficient as it was beautiful to look at. He did a great deal of academic research and study as well as actual physical testing.

A famous example of his rigor in functionalism was going out into the Swedish winter and actually reclining in the snow and sitting on it to examine the molding to see the contours a body creates when a person sits down. He wanted his furniture to fit the human body as well as clothing does. Examining the shapes of his chairs and loungers demonstrated the same curves made by the spine and pelvis at rest.

He also loved the use of curved wood for a fluid look and grace, while attending to structural strength and stability. One of his most famous and successful designs are the Pernilla chairs. These chairs continue to be valued and valuable and are exceptionally stable as well as being lovely. He used curved, laminated woods to make both lounging and easy chair variations. During the wartime, shortages made getting some usual furniture and upholstery materials difficult, but he only used this as a means to be creative in unique substitutes for webbing or upholstered chairs.

Of course he made many other beautiful, successful chairs (mathsson fåtölj), but he was not limited to furniture you could sit on. His Fällbord table is a wonderful piece that is constructed so that it can be set up in different arrays and configurations for almost unlimited flexibility of use in a room. A table can be folded and set up in sizes ranging from small a full sized dining table all from one piece. Some tables have features like legs with adjustable heights.

Mathsson had an incredible number of popular pieces that have proven themselves to be timeless designs. Many of his legacy pieces were designed over 50 years ago which is a testament to Bruno’s genius as a world class furniture designer. Some of his most sought after and valuable designs today are his Pernilla, Eva, Karin, and Jetson chairs along with his Fällbord and Superellips tables.

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Tags: bruno mathsson | bruno mathsson | fällbord | fällbord | pernilla | pernilla

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