Crafting Scandinavian Classics: The Birth of Lamino
Yngve Ekström was a renowned furniture designer from Småland, celebrated for creating what is often referred to as the "furniture of the century," the Lamino armchair. His designs are emblematic of the Scandinavian interior style, characterised by light, rounded, soft shapes in bentwood. Along with his brother, he founded the furniture company Swedese.
Armchairs "Lamino", Swedese.
Born in Hagafors, Småland, Yngve grew up where Sweden's oldest furniture factory, Hagafors Stole Factory, was located. His father, Oskar, was a craftsman there, turning wooden chairs by day and carving wood in his leisure time. After Oskar's death when Yngve was just a young teenager, Yngve and his brother Jerker needed to support their family. Yngve took a job at a sawmill, working there during the day and studying art history and crafts in the evenings.
Innovation and Legacy in Furniture Design
The brothers became adept craftsmen and established the furniture factory ""ESE-möbler"" in 1945, which later evolved into the prolific Swedese factory. Yngve continued his work there until his death in 1988. In the 1960s, the brothers also started the luminaire factory Lystella AB, further exploring their work with bentwood and acrylic paste.
Yngve Ekström's most famous design is the "Lamino" armchair (1956), a product of his extensive experimentation with wood types and bending techniques. The 'Arka' armchair (1955) is another celebrated Ekström design. Beyond his own ventures, he also created pieces for manufacturers such as Broby and Stolan.
The "Arka" armchair, clubbed on Auktionshuset Kolonn for 4 400 GBP.
Ekström's furniture has been widely exhibited, both in Sweden and internationally, including prestigious venues like the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Museum of Modern Art in Toyama, the Kunstgewerbenmuseum in Vienna, and the Nationalmuseum in Stockholm.