Hella Jongerius adds depth and warmth to a Finnish furniture company’s archive.
Dutch designer Jongerius has collaborated with Artek to reinterpret Alvar Aalto’s classics that are renowned for their embodiment of simplicity. Her reinterpretation of Alvar Aalto’s 400 and 401 armchairs together with Stool 60 is the beginning of a new collaboration on a crisp and tactile collection of Artek classics.
The Stool 60 now reveal four new finishes including silver, birch, honey, walnut and charcoal, ultimately adding complexity to the pieces. By introducing upholstery in more tactile fabrics, Jongerius further updates the colour palette of the company’s archive to reveal a more diffused graphic aesthetic.
For the upholstery of armchair 400, two of Jongerius’s unique textiles were selected to create a soft graphic appearance. Hours is a fabric inspired by sheep and the natural colour variations, transcending from light to dark, of their wool. Borders, the second fabric references an old South American tradition, where small bands woven by hand are embroidered together to create larger fabrics, and celebrates the beauty of textile edges.
For the reinterpretation of the 401 armchair the Dutch designer combined structure fabrics to create the trendy colour blocking effect. The combination of the two colours creates a fresh and playful take on upholstery.
The new furniture pieces were on display at this year’s Salone del Mobile.
