Axel Einar Hjorth
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a stained pine "Lovö" armchair, Nordiska Kompaniet, Sweden 1930s.
Cushions enclosed. Height 112 cm, seat height 30 cm (including the cushion ca 44 cm).
Minor wear, small chip. Later nails to the reverse.
Provenance
The original owner was a dentist practising in the center of Stockholm. He acquired an estate on the Swedish west coast, outside Ljungskile where he built a summer house. When the house was completed in 1936 it was furnished with Axel Einar Hjorth's 'Sportstugemöbler' which were very much in fashion at the time. The furniture has remained in the same summer house until now.
Designer
Axel Einar Hjorth is considered one of Sweden's most significant furniture designers during the 1920s and 30s. Hjorth's early employers included Svenska Möbelfabrikerna in Bodafors and the Stockholm Crafts Association. The big breakthrough came as chief architect for Nordiska Kompaniet, a position he took up in 1927 and held until 1938. Hjorth's first major assignment was the Nordiska Kompaniet's lavish stand at the World Exhibition in Barcelona in 1929, to then participate in several major international exhibitions during the following decade. In 1929, Hjorth also breaks new ground and designs the first series of rustic furniture in stained pine, the so-called sports cabin furniture that was named "Lovö", "Utö" and "Sandhamn" after the islands in the Stockholm archipelago.
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