A fresh perspective
Feel like treating your home to something new and a little different? Check out the lastest offerings from the next generation of young Danish designers
Designer Thomas Pedersen
Company SPARK
Danish for ‘kick ass’, Spark was founded by Thomas Pedersen (35) in 2002. He has recently opened a shop in the city of Århus (Vestergade 24), with two other designers. Pedersen’s Sparkling is a super simple modular lamp system that allows the lamp to be packed and transported flat. The lampshades can be purchased separately and are replaceable. Armchair travellers will no doubt love the Sparkling world and European maps. Pedersen also designs furniture and is especially proud of his StingRay rocking chair, which the mayor of Århus recently presented as a gift to Bill Clinton and Kofi Annan when they visited the city. StingRay is produced by Fredericia Furniture. Visit www.fredericia.com for a list of furniture and design stores worldwide that stock the chair. www.spark.as
Designer Rikke Hagen
Company Hagenglas
Rikke Hagen (37) runs her own workshop in Hillerød, a cosy town 40km north of Copenhagen. She makes one-of-a-kind objects and glass products such as pitchers and bowls. Her biggest success is her cognac glass, a stylish stemless glass now produced by well known Danish design company Normann Copenhagen (www.normann-copenhagen.com). “I really like everything about my cognac glass: the idea, the simplicity, the functionality and the aesthetics,” she says. Hagen not only works as a glass blower, she has also designed a tin opener and a pill box. www.hagenglas.dk
Designer René Gejl -
Sách Quang Nguyen
Company XSKY
René Gejl (28) and Sách Quang Nguyen (33), who met at Denmark’s Design School, have just launched their own brand, XSKY, based in Copenhagen. Their first product was a beautifully simple lamp made out of A4, A3 or A2 sheets of paper. “Our goal is to work for a sustainable society through design. We design on the basis of low use of resources, an uncomplicated way of production and recycled materials,” Gejl explains. In keeping with this ethos, they designed Automobili, a chair made from car headrests, which has yet to go into production. The Pusher I dish, also pictured, is made out of polycarbonate, so won’t break if dropped. www.xsky.dk
Designers Allan Nielsen -
Valdemar Madsen
Company ValdePlusNoeddebo
Allan Nielsen (25) is still studying at Denmark’s Design School, and his colleague Valdemar Madsen (25) is at the Technical University of Denmark, both in Copenhagen. They have known each other since the age of 14 and started their own company a year ago. This OnTheEdge lamp is their very first product. “Must a lamp be a static object that is suspended above the dining table? We don’t think so!” says Nielsen. “Our goal was to create an interactive design, where the consumer can play an active role.” You can make the lamp your own by twisting each of the nine Plexiglas plates, changing its appearance. www.valdeplusnoeddebo.com
Designer Trine Andersen
Company ferm LIVING
Nature is an important source of inspiration for Trine Andersen (29), who designs wallpaper, wall stickers and graphic ornaments. She started her company in 2005 and is already exporting to the US as well as other parts of Europe. “For me a design is not good enough until I would like to put it on my own wall,” she says. Her Berry Black wallpaper – white with black and grey berry-studded branches – has been a big hit. Andersen says her personal favourite is her latest, Branch, which is black with naked, white branches. “I like to leave space in my collection for design that is not super commercial,” she adds. www.ferm-living.com
Designers Trine Krull -
Helene Stockmarr Gerdorf -
Karin Blach Nielsen -
Vibeke Sørensen
Company Fabula
Fabula is a group of four female ceramic designers who became friends while at Kolding Design School in Denmark. They all moved to Copenhagen, where they established Fabula in 2001. As a group, they develop a basic idea to work on, while retaining a sense of individual input. “Sometimes this can be difficult, as we try to find a shared vision of design, but each of us should still be able to recognise herself in it,” says Vibeke Sørensen (38). Their standing Flower Bag, made from porcelain and leather, has been very successful. www.fabulacph.dk
Bookmark This Post
