Unique Danish design icons

”Den trætte mand” (the tired man) by Flemming Lassen

The upholstered easy chair in lambskin was designed in 1935-36 by the Danish architect Flemming Lassen (1902-1984), who is famous both for his functionalist buildings and his simple furniture design. For the Cabinetmakers’ Guild Competition in 1935, he designed an upholstered easy chair in soft shapes, named “Hussaren” (the hussar). This was the inspiration for “Den trætte mand”, which was presented at the Cabinetmakers’ Guild Exhibition the following year. The aim was to sit “as warmly and securely as a polar bear cub in the arms of its mother in the midst of the ice cap”.

Early on in his career, Flemming Lassen began working with his friend and colleague Arne Jacobsen. In 1939, they won first prize in the competition for the town hall in Søllerød (today, Rudersdal Rådhus). Flemming Lassen went on to establish his own design studio and later became a lecturer at Kunstakademiets Arkitektskole (the school of architecture)(1951-63). His furniture is extremely rare on the auction market, and his pieces are today iconic classics within the area of modernism that combines soft, organic shapes with high quality and functionality.

”Jagtstolen” (hunting chair) by Børge Mogensen

It is rare, indeed, to get as close to furniture designer Børge Mogensen (1914-1972), as is now the case, with a number of pieces from the furniture designer’s own home on Soløsevej in Gentofte. The crowning glory is “Jagtstolen” – a prototype which stood in his beautiful sun room. Home was, for him, a laboratory, where he could try out new ideas for furniture in practice. In addition to the chair up for auction, which was presented at the Cabinetmakers’ Guild Exhibition in 1950, the auction features several prototypes of Børge Mogensen’s most famous furniture.

As head of FDB’s design studio in 1942-50, Børge Mogensen put reasonably-priced quality furniture in Danish homes. He then continued from his own private design studio, where he created some most recognised classics of the 1950s and 1960s, including “The Spanish Chair”. His lifelong mission was to create simple, practical furniture, modest enough not to dominate free self-expression. He criticised those of his colleagues chasing passing vogues, ignoring the utility value or compromising on the long-term durability. He used the restriction as a creative tool, and he rarely deviated from the use of solid wood – a material he loved in all its guises.

Sublime stoneware by Axel Salto

The summer auction offers an extremely attractive range of Axel Salto’s (1889-1961) sublime stoneware: 32 works estimated from DKK 15,000–800,000, which provide a unique insight into the diverse universe of the artist. The auction’s highlights include a monumental vase in sprouting style with sung glaze, and a large vase in sprouting style with oxblood glaze.

The rippled, budding and sprouting style is characteristic of Axel Salto’s organic stoneware, which is primarily inspired by the creative force of nature. He moved from the rippled style of his early stoneware from 1929-30, to the budding style inspired by organic fruit shapes, to the sprouting style, which was directly inspired by natural growth. From the mid-1930s, Salto also moved towards a type of oriental mysticism, which invoked the inherent power of the objects, casting a subtle philosophical tinge over his stoneware. It wasn’t about imitating nature, but rather recreating its spirit.

International auction 841

Design auction: Thursday 13 June from 3 pm at Bredgade 33 in Copenhagen
Preview: 30 May–3 June 2013 at the same address

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