Artek 75 years

1 March 2010

Artek celebrates its 75th anniversary substantially all year long in 2010. The first jubilee event took place in Stockholm in February, where Artek opened a new showroom on 10 February. The opening of the Stockholm location also marks the launch of DRESS THE CHAIR!, a worldwide campaign to celebrate the skills and knowledge of Artek’s know-how.

Photo by Jouho Lehtola

Dress the Chair!
The aim of the campaign is to highlight the quality and craftsmanship of Artek products. Artek has invited renowned designers and artists to be inspired by Artek’s classic armchairs, focusing on the iconic Armchair 400 designed by Alvar Aalto. Affectionately nicknamed 'The Tank', the armchair was first shown at the Milan Triennale in 1936.

During the opening week of the Stockholm showroom, Artek’s master upholsterer worked in public to demonstrate the methods of upholstering.

From Stockholm, DRESS THE CHAIR! will go on tour to Milan, New York, Sydney, London, Tokyo and Helsinki. Along the way, new artists and designers will be invited to participate in the campaign, and their personal visions will be published one by one as the campaign reaches each new metropolis. As the tour ends in Helsinki, all visions will be brought together for a final show.

Ilse Crawford (Photo by David Lundberg)

Ilse Crawford heads her design company Studioilse alongside her brand consultancy. A figurehead for design that puts the human being at the centre. Studioilse has a definitive approach to creating charismatic and long lasting brands through design. Fascinated by what drives us, brings us together and ultimately makes us happy, her studio manifests this through brands, buildings, furniture and products. Past projects include the award winning Mathias Dahlgren restaurant and the Inn brand. The studio is currently working on an events space in Hungary, a collaboration with Tadao Ando.

Fanny Aronsen (Photo by David Lundberg)

Fanny Aronsen, who stands behind the brand carrying her name, has been living many years in Paris, Amsterdam and Bruxelles and now returned to Stockholm. All fabrics are designed in her studio in Stockholm and produced by the best weaving mills in Europe. Characteristics of her collection are timeless, tactile qualities where an artistic expression and contemporary design are combined. She is also Professor in Textile Design at Konstfack in Stockholm.

Art and Tech Forever
When Artek was founded in 1935, a Manifest was drawn up, inspired by Functionalism. The vision was to interconnect modern visual arts, rational furniture production and popular education. The philosophy of Artek has been moulded by strong and talented people whose ideologies and radicalism are today more vibrant than ever. Artek's original values - long-term durability and high quality combined with a clean form language - are still the company's driving forces.

On 18 March 2010 Artek launched a new showroom/office in New York located at 199 Lafayette Street, Suite 5D, New York City.

Read more:
Proventus' engagement in Artek
Artek's homepage
The launch of STANDARD, a fragrance by Artek and Comme des Garçons
Artek at Salone Internazionale del Mobile 2009
Interview with Mirkku Kullberg, CEO of Artek
Alvar Aalto through the eyes of Shigeru Ban
The launch of the Bambu collection