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Product:SUNDAY Date:04-29-2007Desk: SPC-0008-CMYK/19-04-07/18:58:40
Great design wears well. That
may explain why works by Dan-
ish designers of the last century
are still winning prestigious
awards and why design junkies
are seeking out Danish home
décor and design products with
an enthusiasm not seen since
the 1950s, when Danish modern
(remember teak?) was all the
rage.
Probably the most recogniz-
able modern chair designs come
from Arne Jacobsen, the grand-
daddy of modern Danish design.
Variations on his “Egg” chair,
designed in 1958, have been a
staple of homes and offices for
more than half a century. De-
signers, such as Tord Boontje
from Holland, are now giving
the Egg a new look with special-
ly designed fabrics, as shown on
the Décor Extra cover. The Egg
is available both in classic col-
ours and updated prints at Plan
B Office, (91 Parliament St., To-
ronto, 416-941–1010 planbof-
fice.com), with prices starting at
about $5,300.
Jacobsen, by the way, was one
of the first designers to create a
full line of household or indus-
trial products. He oversaw every
detail, including the look of door
handles and furniture, of the de-
sign of the Royal Hotel in Co-
penhagen, (now the Radission
SAS Royal Hotel), which opened
in 1960. The famous Room 606,
which has retained much of the
original furniture and cool grey-
blue scheme, is still rented out —
most frequently to fans of Ja-
cobsen’s work.
Just how timeless Danish
modernism is became apparent
when an upholstered wing
chair, made in 1960 by the leg-
endary Hans Wegner, was re-
launched by Carl Hansen, a
Danish furniture maker who
collaborated with Wegner as far
back as 1949. Called the Ch445,
the reissued chair design was
shown at the International Con-
temporary Furniture Fair in
New York last year and was giv-
en the ICFF Editors Award for
Furniture. It, and other Wegner
chair designs, are now available
in Toronto at several stores, in-
cluding Hollace Cluny (1070
Yonge St. Toronto, 416-968-
7894), where prices for the
Wegner series start at about
$6,300. For a full list of dealers,
go to carlhansen.com.
Verner Panton, who worked
with Jacobsen, injected the
clean lines of Danish modern-
ism with a Mod esthetic. His
whimsical Spiral lamp garnered
huge attention when it came out
in 1969. It, too, is enjoying new-
found attention. Sold under the
brand name Verpan, the design
has become a hot seller at Euro-
lite, the exclusive distributor of
Panton’s designs in southern
Ontario (5 Lower Sherbourne
St., Suite 100, Toronto, 416-203-
1501, eurolite.com). A one-tier
Spiral in white sells for $1,200.
Panton’s Globe pendant lamp,
designed in 1977, has white re-
flectors held by steel chains. In
Toronto, it’s available at Euro-
lite by special order, where the
20-inch model sells for $3,200.
The current generation of
Danish designers is equally in-
tent on creating beautiful, use-
ful objects for the home and
houseware market. Take, for ex-
ample, Lene Frantzen and Eva
Helene Rasmussen, partners in
Danish design company Zig-
zign. Their latest consumer of-
fering, the Slice, marries great
design with practicality. The
Slice is 100 per cent felt wood
that has been dyed and then
rolled up and cut, or “sliced.”
The richly coloured material,
in lush shades of eye-popping
red, electric blue and tropical
yellow and green, is fashioned
into seat pads, cushions, pillows
and hot pads.
The Slice is also environmen-
tally friendly. Its thick surface
rejects dirt, insulates, is heart-
resistant, muffles sound, and
can be easily wiped clean with a
damp cloth.
The Slice chair pad will be
available soon for $310 at Kiosk
(99 Jarvis St., Toronto, 416-601-
1661, kioskmobilia.com). All
other items can be ordered on-
line through zigzign.com. The
price for the 15-inch table mat is
$52, not including shipping.
The Danes have always been at
the forefront of developing al-
ternative forms of energy, in-
cluding wind power, which ac-
counts for about 10 per cent of
the country’s energy supply.
Consumer interest in high-effi-
ciency, wood-burning stoves is
also strong, fuelling the growth
of Danish companies such as
Rais, which has been manufac-
turing high-efficiency, clean-
burning wood stoves since the
early ’70s.
One of the most popular mod-
els sold locally is the Rais Pina,
which can be accessorized so
that it turns 360 degrees, offer-
ing a view of the flames from any
vantage point. It sells for about
$5,000.
Rais wood stoves are available
through custom builder and fur-
niture designer Yuill McGregor
of North on Sixty, who acts as
the Ontario representative for
the company. A list of dealers
and more product information
can be found at northonsixty.ca
or by calling 1-877-985-2458.
Great contemporary Danish
design can even be found in
kitchen cookware. Popular in
Denmark and other Nordic
countries for the past 50 years,
Scanpan is a Danish manufac-
turer of cookware that’s recent-
ly come to Canada. The line in-
cludes pots, pans, dutch ovens
and woks coated with a non-
stick ceramic titanium, applied
through a casting method that
uses pressure of more than 250
tonnes and temperatures of up
to 20,000C.
According to its makers, that
means the aluminum bottoms
of the pans stay flat, and there-
fore, better heat conduction.
The Danish design touch is re-
flected in the clean lines, and
high-end materials. Scanpan
products are available in profes-
sional and consumer-grade op-
tions at most Sears locations,
and specialty kitchen shops.
Visit scanpan.ca. for more in-
formation.
The Design Exchange will host
“Contemporary Danish Design,”
from May 15 to June 25, a homage to
post-war design. Call 416-363-6121
or log onto dx.org for details.
Fresh
Danish
The clean linear lines and
organic shapes of this
Georg Jensen candelabra,
and wooden cheese
board, left, are typical of
contemporary Danish
design, famous for simple
form and function. The
elegant candelabra is
brushed stainless steel
and emulates a bouquet
of flowers, with
tulip-shaped holders and
six curved stems.
HOW
THE DANES
HAVE IMPROVED
ON THEIR
ENDURING STYLES
Verner Panton’s
Globe pendant
lamp, designed in
1977, has white
reflectors held by
steel chains that
seem to float
inside the
transparent
acrylic globe.
The original “Egg” and “Drop” chairs (left and right), in Room
606 of the old Royal Hotel in Copenhagen. The Drop chair never
went into production and prototypes are extremely rare.
Verner
Panton’s
whimsical
Spiral lamp
garnered huge
attention
when it came
out in 1969.
BY VICKY SANDERSON
COMPOSITECMYK
G8 SUNDAY ON SU3
!SU3 290407ON G 008Q!
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TORONTO STAR
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SUNDAY, APRIL 29, 2007
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