Svenskt Tenn brings back rare furniture designs to mark its centenary

Svenskt Tenn celebrates its centenary with the launch of two rare projects from its archives. The celebrations will officially start in 2024, a year that will mark the Swedish company's 100th anniversary, having been founded in 1924 by Estrid Ericson as a design brand specialising in pewter objects. Working closely with Austrian architect Josef Frank between the 1930s and 1960s, Ericson's company established a unique blend of sophisticated and functional interior accessories and furniture mixed with colourful, often whimsical prints. 

Svenskt Tenn centenary celebrated with rare and unseen furniture 

To start the year-long celebration, the company previews two rare designs, found in the archives and produced in collaboration with two artisans, each in a limited edition. 

The reissues include the 'Stockholm Cabinet', produced for the first time and based on a Josef Frank design, made in a limited edition of 100 by Anders Mattsson Cabinetworks in Valdemarsvik, Sweden. This is the first time the design will be produced, based on original sketches by Frank. The architect noted that the piece should be upholstered with paper, and for the anniversary edition the cabinet features an antique map of Stockholm by lithographer Heinrich Neuhaus, dating back to 1875. 

'One of the central elements of Josef Frank’s interior philosophy was that he wanted his rooms to feel spacious and airy and one tactic that he used to achieve this when designing was showing the contours of a room, such as the line of where the floor meets the wall,' says Per Ahldén, in charge of the company's archives. 'With this in mind, he often designed his cabinets with tall legs on the principle that the skirting board should be visible underneath the cabinet, just as with the “Stockholm Cabinet”.'

Meanwhile, the 'Noah’s Ark Nesting Table' by Nils Fougstedt connects the anniversary launch with the brand's origin as a pewter producer (Svenskt Tenn being Swedish for 'Swedish pewter'). The design consists of three wooden tables with an engraved pewter top, defined by motifs from the story of Noah's Ark. Produced in a limited edition of 30 pieces, it's made by fine cabinet maker Martin Altwegg, following the original design from Svenskt Tenn’s archives, and engraved by hand by Michiko Englund.

The engraver's historical research included original techniques from the 1920s and 1930s (when the original motif would have been created), and mixed contemporary and traditional tools to make the piece as close to the original as possible. 

'It was Nils Fougstedt and Estrid Ericson who first started designing and producing pewter objects together in 1924, and when Ericson later that year started her own company (Svenskt Tenn), Fougstedt joined her as a trusted coworker for many years,' says Ahldén. 'The “Noah’s Ark Nesting Table” was one of the first furniture designs ever produced by Svenskt Tenn, at a time when the company was still very much focused on objects.'

'At Svenskt Tenn, we work with the past and the present aligned,' adds the company's marketing manager, Tora Grape. 'Our archives make up the very core of this work, with design from 1924 and forward, that is just as relevant today when placed in our contemporary context. We are proud to introduce these two unique objects to celebrate the company’s 100 years on the design scene, and for the astonishing craftsmanship that makes the production possible.'

The two pieces are available for pre-order from Svenskt Tenn’s official channels from 9 to 31 October 2023 and delivered to customers from spring 2024

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