Scandinavian modernism emerged out of a desire to create democratic design—goods that were simple, functional, well-made and affordable. Compared to other European modernist design ethos, laden with political, aesthetic and social ideologies, Scandinavian design has been celebrated for its straight-forward approach in being accessible and making everyday spaces handsome, considered and in harmony with the natural world. The earliest wave of Scandinavian modernism in the 1920s and 1930s stressed high quality materials and handmade techniques, making mass-production a bit impractical. With the explosion of consumer culture after WWII, designers like Arne Jacobsen answered the call to create designs true to the Scandinavian spirit that could be produced on a global scale and exist beyond domestic spaces.
Jacobsen's architectural body of work spans housing complexes, civic and commercial buildings and modest single-family homes, but he is probably most celebrated for his schools. Historian Alan Bullock remarks that Jacobsen was “so sensitive to the fact that he was building for children and therefore scaled it down so you weren't overpowered.”
The Munkegård Elementary School in Gentofte, Denmark, completed in 1957 and for which the present lot was made, is an especially interesting structure. Jacobsen designed the building so that the classrooms were arranged on a lattice system, with outdoor courtyards in the negative spaces, thus creating a building that felt expansive but also fostered intimacy.
The school featured Jacobsen's Tongue chairs in varying sizes in the classrooms, Ant chairs in the auditorium and other furniture, textiles, and utility ware he designed specifically for the school, including the present lot, dubbed the “Munkegård lamp” and produced by Louis Poulsen. These over-sized built-in lights, recessed into the ceiling, produce an ethereal hovering effect and are a testament to the great care with which Jacobsen and Scandinavian design as a whole regard even the smallest details of our daily lives.
It may sound affected—but it is the act of creation itself, and it is equally exhilarating whether one is working on a teaspoon or a national bank.
Arne Jacobsen
Arne Jacobsen 1902–1971
Arne Jacobsen was an architect and designer who approached his work from both perspectives, making major contributions to Functionalism and Danish Modern style. Born and raised in Copenhagen, Denmark, he won the silver medal for his chair design at the Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs in Paris in 1925 while an architecture student at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. After winning the Danish Architect’s Association competition for his House of the Future design, he opened his own office in 1929. Jacobsen was forced to flee to Sweden in 1943 following the rise of the Nazi party, but later returned to Denmark ushering in a wave of landmark public and private commissions.
Auction Results Arne Jacobsen
