Borge Mogensen
Encyclopedia
Børge Mogensen was a Danish
furniture designer.
He was one of the most important among a generation of furniture designers who made the concept of “Danish design
” known throughout the world. Together with colleagues such as Arne Jacobsen
and Hans Wegner
, Mogensen created international respect for Danish
furniture design, and his simple and functional designs have for more than half a century enjoyed worldwide demand.
In 1950 he was awarded the Eckersberg Medal and in 1950-1972. In 1950 he left FDB’s furniture design studio to found his own design studio. His work has been featured in one-man exhibitions in Zurich
, London
, New York
, Stockholm
, Paris
and Copenhagen
, and his many awards for design include the Eckersberg Medaillen (1950) and the C.F. Hansen medal (1972).
Cabinetmaker's Guild Exhibitions. He was also the Head of Furniture Design during the 1940s for the Danish Cooperative Wholesale Society. His furniture, strongly representative of his training as a traditional craftsman, was greatly appreciated by a public who had not yet become interested in modernism and the changes its influence had created on furniture and the decorative arts. Mogensen appeased these sceptics with his classical designs, but also, from the beginning of his career, subtly incorporated new ideas into his revisitation of traditional forms. He designed a sofa in 1945 with leather ties which allowed the sides to be dropped down. A 1949 chair, claimed by critics to be "a model for future chairs," used a curved, slightly sloping backrest, cut out along the spine in an organic dewdrop shape. A 1951 interior for the Cabinetmaker's show combined Danish oak with leather upholstery and slate tiling in a way that articulated a new grouping of materials. "This is Where We Live, " a family room set he designed in 1953, dealt with the new concept of a living room that would contain a workbench and a sewing table, encouraging members of the family to take part in several activities simultaneously.
.
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
furniture designer.
He was one of the most important among a generation of furniture designers who made the concept of “Danish design
Danish design
Danish Design is a term often used to describe a style of functionalistic design and architecture that was developed in mid-20th century. Influenced by the German Bauhaus school, many Danish designers used the new industrial technologies, combined with ideas of simplicity and functionalism to...
” known throughout the world. Together with colleagues such as Arne Jacobsen
Arne Jacobsen
Arne Emil Jacobsen, usually known as Arne Jacobsen, was a Danish architect and designer. He is remembered for contributing so much to architectural Functionalism as well as for the worldwide success he enjoyed with simple but effective chair designs.-Early life and education:Arne Jacobsen was born...
and Hans Wegner
Hans Wegner
Hans Jørgen Wegner, , was a successful Danish furniture designer who contributed to the international popularity of mid-century Danish design. His work belongs to a modernist school with emphasis on functionality. He is probably best known for his chairs.-Early years:Born to cobbler Peter M...
, Mogensen created international respect for Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
furniture design, and his simple and functional designs have for more than half a century enjoyed worldwide demand.
Early years
Børge Mogensen was born in Aalborg, Denmark. He started as a cabinetmaker in 1934, and studied furniture design at the Danish School of Arts and Crafts in Copenhagen from 1936–38, and then trained as an architect (from 1938–42) at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts' School of Architecture graduating in 1942. From 1938-43 he worked at various design studios in Copenhagen,including with Kaare Klint.1942-50 he was manager of FDB’s furniture design studio, Copenhagen and in 1945 was awarded the Bissen Scholarship, Denmark. 1945-47,he was teaching assistant with Professor Kaare Klint at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts' School of Architecture, Copenhagen.In 1950 he was awarded the Eckersberg Medal and in 1950-1972. In 1950 he left FDB’s furniture design studio to found his own design studio. His work has been featured in one-man exhibitions in Zurich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
, and his many awards for design include the Eckersberg Medaillen (1950) and the C.F. Hansen medal (1972).
Time with Klint
During his time with Kaare Klint, Mogensen fostered a deep commitment to producing classical, simple and highly functional furniture. He also became interested in researching contemporary lifestyles, in order to develop domestic objects that are customized for specific uses. Continuing Klint's innovative studies in how the size and proportion of objects should influence their design, Mogensen, collaborating with Grethe Meyer, produced a project in 1954 called the Boligens Byggeskabe (Construction Cupboards of the House), which introduced the idea of building shelving and storage units as part of a room, rather than purchasing and placing them in the space. Mogensen did studies to determine the standard measures for common objects, such as cutlery and shirts, and how many of each item the average person owned. With this information he developed a set of figures for the base width and depth of drawers and shelves, and his information tables were published as a manual on building storage systems. Between 1955 and 1967 he worked on the related "Øresund" shelving series that took on the mammoth task of solving every storage need that could arise in the modern home.Furniture Design
In addition to mapping out the terrain of home storage, Mogensen was a prolific furniture designer, exhibiting almost every year at the CopenhagenCopenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
Cabinetmaker's Guild Exhibitions. He was also the Head of Furniture Design during the 1940s for the Danish Cooperative Wholesale Society. His furniture, strongly representative of his training as a traditional craftsman, was greatly appreciated by a public who had not yet become interested in modernism and the changes its influence had created on furniture and the decorative arts. Mogensen appeased these sceptics with his classical designs, but also, from the beginning of his career, subtly incorporated new ideas into his revisitation of traditional forms. He designed a sofa in 1945 with leather ties which allowed the sides to be dropped down. A 1949 chair, claimed by critics to be "a model for future chairs," used a curved, slightly sloping backrest, cut out along the spine in an organic dewdrop shape. A 1951 interior for the Cabinetmaker's show combined Danish oak with leather upholstery and slate tiling in a way that articulated a new grouping of materials. "This is Where We Live, " a family room set he designed in 1953, dealt with the new concept of a living room that would contain a workbench and a sewing table, encouraging members of the family to take part in several activities simultaneously.
Late 50s and early 60s
By the end of the decade, however, Mogensen had re-embraced a more straightforward functionalism that Klaus Meedom, writing about the Cabinetmaker's exhibit, said was "so strict that he has to violate his own rules to be able to breathe freely." A redesigned "Spanish" chair in 1959 was praised for its elegance and materials. He designed a set of simple, sturdy and modest furniture for a seaside cottage in 1959, a very traditional oak table and chair set in 1960 and a set in pine to furnish a "husband's study" in 1962. Mogensen also collaborated extensively with weaver Lis Ahlmann on textile designs, and, after Klint's death in 1954, succeeded him as designer to the Danish Museum of Decorative ArtDanish Museum of Decorative Art
The Danish Museum of Art & Design is a museum in Copenhagen for Danish and international design and crafts. It features works of famous Danish designers like Arne Jacobsen, Jacob Jensen and Kaare Klint, who was one of the two architects who remodeled the former Frederiks Hospital into a museum in...
.
Awards and destinctions
- 1972 Honorary Royal Designer for IndustryRoyal Designers for IndustryRoyal Designer for Industry is a distinction established by the British Royal Society of Arts in 1936, to encourage a high standard of industrial design and enhance the status of designers. It is awarded to people who have achieved "sustained excellence in aesthetic and efficient design for...
, London