Danish Design Is Ready for Its Global Spotlight

For the Danes, design is in the blood. Most grew up with Hans J. Wegner’s Wishbone chairs around the dining room table and Poul Henningsen’s Artichoke light hanging from above. And for those who pursue a career in design, education is top-notch, with generous funding programs offered by the government. Take the Danish Arts Workshop, which is a series of facilities for woodworking, metalsmithing, weaving, textile printing, clay turning, and more just across the canal from Copenhagen’s city center. Danish designers can apply for a residency in the workshops to have their projects realized by professionally trained craftsmen and artists with industrial-size machinery—for free.

Maria Bruun and Anne Dorthe Vester of MBADV have been using the program for years, spending their residency time developing prototypes of their architecturally inspired furniture pieces. "It’s quite an amazing facility to have at hand," says Bruun. "Most designers don’t even have the opportunity to go directly into the workshops. They have to find a carpenter or manufacturer to develop their stuff." But here, designers get to work directly with the craftsperson making their product, so tweaks and new ideas can form seamlessly and in real time. The Danish Arts Foundation also supports local designers with working grants up to 800,000DKK (around $120,000) to keep their doors open while they meticulously perfect the craft, no questions asked. With so many programs aiding young Danish designers, why is it rare to see their work abroad in the States? "There are many super talented artists and designers in Denmark; we’re just very Danish about it," furniture designer Mathias Weber explains. "We don’t brag."

It’s this humble attitude and open approach of the design community that radiates throughout Copenhagen during 3 Days of Design, the annual event showcasing work from a range of Danish designers, artisans, producers, and architects. First-time visitors to the show may be surprised to see that over 150 exhibitors open their doors to the general public, each venue marked by a giant red balloon that anyone can spot from down the gade. A schedule of events (like cocktail parties and workshops) and intimate talks from the likes of Bjarke Ingels, David Thulstrup, and the founders of Hay are posted on the site and app for all to see, with only a few requiring preregistration. And $14 tickets can be purchased for transportation around the city via shuttle bus and boat. The Danish design community is clearly ready for the international recognition they deserve, and while they may never brag about their work, anyone is welcome to pop in and see it during the show.

This open-door policy will extend well after 3 Days of Design for Menu, who revealed their new headquarters within a brand-new hybrid space in Copenhagen’s Nordhavn district called the AUDO. Officially opened to the public last week, the hotel and coworking space with a cafe, restaurant, and concept store is a collaboration between the design brand and Norm Architects, with creative direction from Kinfolk magazine cofounder Nathan Williams. Menu’s own offices sit on the second floor of the three-story former boathouse, and open directly onto the public coworking facilities and materials library, a resource for any designer or architect to use. "What we did with this building is give a little bit back to the city and pull the neighborhood in," says Norm Architects’ Jonas Bjerre-Poulsen. "By lowering the foyer space and creating a ‘piazza,’ we can host talks and invite the city of Copenhagen to use the space." The name, the AUDO, is abbreviated from the Latin phrase ab uno disce omnes, meaning "from one, learn all." "The idea is that every guest that walks through the door has something to share with the rest of us," explains Williams. The public spaces are open for business; the hotel residencies will be available to book later this summer.

Of course, hospitality is a strong part of Copenhagen’s design DNA, with its prized Noma restaurant earning just as much recognition for the interiors and architecture as for its award-winning menu. The original Noma was dreamed up by Space Copenhagen, a local studio behind the interiors of many of the city’s other top restaurants, including 108, Geranium, and Geist. To bring their extensive body of work to the design community, the firm teamed up with longtime collaborator Malte Gormsen on a 10-piece collection of furniture—including dining chairs, tables, and stools similar to the ones in their famed restaurants—that launched last week and will be available through Gormsen’s workshop. Across the picture-perfect Nyhavn canal, in the historic Charlottenborg Palace, local biannual magazine Ark Journal also focused on hospitality design, with an exhibition of 16 Danish furniture brands exploring the concept of a home away from home. Heritage brands like Fritz Hansen and Eilersen mingled with contemporary makers like Overgaard & Dyrman and Form & Refine, all showing living and dining furniture in the warm and minimal Nordic aesthetic. An adjacent gallery space featured more experimental new works from young Danish talents including Pettersen & Hein, Anne Brandhøj, and Frederik Nystrup-Larsen & Oliver Sundqvist.

It is widely known that the three pillars of traditional Danish design are craftsmanship, functionality, and accessibility—the same core values found in Japanese design. Karimoku Case Study is a new lifestyle brand that solidifies the two cultures’ mutual admiration in a furniture collection by Denmark’s Norm Architects and Japan’s Keiji Ashizawa Design, and developed by Karimoku, Japan’s largest wooden furniture manufacturer. The official launch took place in The Kinfolk Gallery, which was transformed into a sanctuary-like apartment where the pieces could shine among works by local makers Sara Martinsen, Turi Heisselberg Pedersen, and August Sandgren.

Japanese influence was also present in Frama’s studio store, located in the former St. Pauls Apothek, which dates back to the 1800s. Against the opulent apothecary shelves original to the space, stylist Louisa Grey curated the already Zen-like space for 3 Days of Design with Japanese accents—from a sand and stone garden to a traditional Hinoki tub. Frama’s latest Atelier seating collection mimics the refined forms and materials.

While natural materials and minimalist forms are a signature of Danish design, the other end of the spectrum is also ever-present. The Danes thrive on color, from Copenhagen’s streets (color-blocked in saturated pastels and jewel tones) to the walls of many interiors that echo the same palette. And nowhere is this distinctive range of colors better exhibited than Montana’s offering of modular storage furniture. Last week, the brand added 30 new colors to its offering of 42, including a rust-orange (Turmeric 149), vivid lavender (Iris 164), and sunny pastel yellow (Chamomile 159). On the other side of town, in an industrial area surrounded by old trains and red-brick buildings, Reform presented the brand’s colorful new collaboration with Ghent-based creative duo Muller Van Severen. The collection of cabinet fronts for IKEA’s kitchen system features mix-and-match panels in unexpected hues like kelly green, tomato red, and steel blue in an even more unexpected material: the wax-like polyethylene traditionally used in cutting boards.

And inside the historic Lindencrone Mansion, Hay added their distinctive palette to the otherwise lavish space; the New Order shelving system popped in cherry red, and a new lamp with a pleated shade by Inga Sempé electrified in bright yellow. Ever the champion of democratic design, Hay also presented the new Shane Schneck–designed Bernard chair, which, with its blocky silhouette and canvas or leather seat, could stand as the modern-day answer to Denmark’s iconic safari chair design. Joining Hay in the effort to create beautiful design for the people is Takt, a new direct-to-consumer furniture brand that launched last week. Developed by Denmark’s Thomas Bentzen, England’s PearsonLloyd, and Finland’s Rasmus Palmgren, the line’s entire production chain is environmentally certified based on the EU Ecolabel. Takt’s first pieces—three wooden chair styles—range from $199 to $277.

Perhaps Danish design is strongest when these two aesthetics—refined simplicity and vivid color—come together, as is the case with Included Middle, a brand by furniture designer Chris L. Halstrøm and textile designer Margrethe Odgaard. Both esteemed talents in their own right (Halstrøm has an upcoming line with Design Within Reach, while Odgaard is the mind behind Montana’s new color palette), together the two women take their skills to new levels. "I make all the shapes and forms and she puts on the colors," explains Halstrøm, an avowed minimalist whose studio is decorated with brushes from Japan and iterations of her award-winning Georg stool. "And because of that, we both have to tone down our work a bit, and then we stand back and say 'Oh, that’s what we did.'" One thing they "did" together for 3 Days of Design is launch their Gerda series of outdoor furniture for Skagerak in an unexpected yellow and forest green colorway. “She’s all about colors, me not so much,” says Halstrøm. But maybe forcing oneself out of one's comfort zone—while respecting the craft and its traditions—is the new trend in Danish design.