Bukowskis and Marimekko in dialogue with Astrid Sylwan

Bukowskis & Marimekko

The Artists Who Shaped Us Astrid Sylwan

Considering she’s one of Sweden’s most celebrated abstract painters, it’s hard to fathom that Astrid Sylwan applied ten times before getting accepted into Konstfack’s Master of Fine Arts programme at the age of 29. But as her prominent career has later shown, Sylwan’s impressive perseverance clearly paid off in full with countless accolades and recognitions to her name.

Selected for Marimekko’s special anniversary auction, “The Artists Who Shaped Us”, we caught up with Sylwan for a conversation about her working relationship with the Finnish design house. We also asked what it’s like for a painter to go from the originality of a canvas to repeated prints on cushions, curtains, and clothes.

Being such an integrated part of Nordic design history, many people across the Nordic countries have personal relationships or memories of Marimekko. Does that go for you as well?

– My first memory of Marimekko was my childhood’s bedroom, where my mum made me curtains out of the Unikko textile in blue, yellow and orange. The room was bright yellow. In my memory, the sun was always shining through those curtains. I loved that room.

How did you experience your collaboration with Marimekko’s printmakers?

– I couldn’t have done it without them. I have no training in textiles, and though they did their best to educate me, the challenge was beyond me. The genius printmaker Petri Juslin sent me an email when he had finished the prints that said: “Working with you is like jumping out of an aeroplane without a parachute.” The feeling was mutual for sure.

Did anything surprise you about the collaboration?

– Yes, how difficult it was. I didn’t know what to expect, but I didn’t expect it would take a year and a bit. I learned a lot in the process.

Can you tell us about the inspiration behind the Vattenblänk pattern?

– It came to me at my first visit to Marimekko’s factory in Helsinki. I saw the big, long printmaking tables where the fabrics flow like a stream while being printed. That gave me the idea to make it into a stream, where the water swirls around the rocks and stones, and the trees, the sky and the light reflects in the water. I wish I could have seen it printed. I never did.

You and Marimekko received the Elle Interiors Design Award for Fabric in 2012. How did it feel to suddenly be recognized in a design rather than an art category?

– That was a huge surprise and one that I am awfully proud of. It is all part of my artistic practice. The labels are superficial.