He is considered one of Norway's most legendary and prolific designers of the 1950s and 1960s and is known for his well-balanced and craftsmanlike use of line and his understanding of materials.
In 1959 he won a gold medal at the German Crafts Fair in Munich. He was also honored when President John F. Kennedy and his wife purchased his furniture, as did the emperor of Japan.
Some of his best known designs are the Broadway chair, the Form chair, the Times entertainment series, the Krobo multipurpose bench and the Minerva office line.
Afdal died in Oslo in 1999.
From osloart.com and blomqvist.com
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| Broadway chair utopiaretromodern.com |
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| Times bar deconet.com |
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| Krobo multipurpose bench osloart.com |
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| Minerva office chair deconet.com |
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| Hunter chairs liveauctioneers.com |
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| Bellis coffee table deconet.com |
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| Shelving unit blomqvist.com |
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| Armchair with cane back icollector.com |
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| Leather sofa 1stdibs.com |
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| Form chairs from our store |
These are all gorgeous pieces but have to say the quiet perfection of the Krobo multi-purpose bench takes my breath away.
ReplyDeleteIsn't it amazing? One of our friends/fellow dealers in Dallas has one for sale.
DeleteWow, great stuff =), thats the bookshelv i have and i love it!
ReplyDeleteOh, wow...that bookshelf is absolutely beautiful. You're so lucky to have it!
DeleteMakes me proud to be Norwegian, Dana! His furniture is sooo beautiful. I've been after that bench for a long time, but they don't appear very often over here, which of course is reflected in the prices....
ReplyDeleteThe bench is wonderful, and I was curious about how easy they were to find there, as well as how expensive they are. It's interesting that they're scarce and rather costly. They certainly are here!
DeleteI just love this stuff - it takes me back to being a kid but also it is so cool looking, so much style. I wonder what people will think of as home furnishing style years from now- mass produced leather couches and old Tv hutches?
ReplyDeleteToday's furniture, for the most part, is meant to be disposable so we have to buy more, more, more. Its poor construction and lack of attention to real style and detail are exactly what makes fine vintage modern furniture continue to increase in value. Fifty years from now, I believe people will look at pictures of today's furniture (because it definitely isn't built to last fifty years) and think, "What a bunch of crap." And they will wonder why we allowed ourselves to be ripped off by manufacturers who were more interested in profit than craftsmanship.
DeleteThats my grandfather!!...
ReplyDeleteI love hearing from relatives of designers. I'm always honored when they read my blog posts about their family members.
DeleteYes, I love reading blogs and posts about the Scandinavian mid cent furniture, especially when it is about my grandfather. Great job! Me, my sister and Mother (mom is the daughter of Torbjorn) are buying up as much stuff as we can, pretty fun too look around. Its harder to find anything, since I moved from Norway to Denver Colorado three years ago. Always looking for the Broadway and Hunter chairs, Impossible to find. Torbjorn designed two houses in Norway, one for himself, and one for his sibling. They are superb, very clean and simple with beautiful details. My mom grew up in the house. The kids in the street used to call it the glass house:)
ReplyDeleteI'd love for you or your mom to give me more information about your grandfather so I can do a follow-up post, and I'd also love to see photos of the houses he designed. Our store is in Dallas, Texas, and if we ever run across one of his pieces, we'd be happy to let you know.
DeleteAlso, if you'd be kind enough to give me a phonetic spelling of your grandfather's name, I would like to add it to my pronunciation guide. You can email me at dana@mid2mod.com.
Tor and Dana I have a chair that I believe is designed by Torbjorn. I have found two examples of this settee but have not yet found another example of the chair version. One settee is on 1stdibs and the other is on deconet.
ReplyDeleteDana, I will email you a picture of my chair.