Eero Aarnio

Finnish designer Eero Aarnio, born in Helsinki in 1932, studied at the Institute of Industrial Arts in Helsinki from 1954 to 1957 and opened his own industrial and interior design studio in 1962.

He is one of the most celebrated furniture designers of the twentieth century. His work combines great attention to formal balance with a charming sense of irony and the use of plastic in bright colours.

Over a career spanning more than half a century, Aarnio has created many outstanding designs that have helped make Finnish design popular around the world.

In 1963 he designed the Ball Chair, a spherical armchair in fibreglass. A few years later it went into mass production, and fibreglass became his favourite material.

With the Pastil Chair (awarded in 1968 by the American Institute of Interior Designers) and the Tomato Chair he gained international fame.

His more recent work includes the Double Bubble lamps, in several sizes (table or floor), first made in glass and later in white plastic, which give a soft, even light.

Eero Aarnio's furniture has appeared in films, music videos and fashion shoots all over the world.

Prizes and awards:

• 1958 - Valmet Trade Mark Competition, Helsinki, Finland (1st prize)
• 1959 - International Furniture Competition, Cantù, Italy (3rd prize)
• 1963 - Export Furniture Competition, Helsinki (3rd prize)
• 1964 - International Competition on Furniture and Design, Cantù, Italy (1st prize)
• 1965 - Scandinavian Park and Street Competition, Stockholm, Sweden (1st prize)
• 1967 - Steel Furniture Competition, Helsinki, Finland (2nd prize)
• 1968 - International Design Award of the AID (American Institute of Interior Designers) for the Pastil Chair, also known as Gyro, New York, USA
• 1999 - Honorary member of SIO, the Finnish association of interior architects

Eero Aarnio's work is held in these museums:

• MoMA, Museum of Modern Art, New York, USA
• Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands
• Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France
• Die Neue Sammlung, Munich, Germany
• Galerie für Avantgarde Kunst, Cologne, Germany
• Galerie für Zeitgenössische Kunst, Leipzig, Germany
• Kunsthal Rotterdam, Netherlands
• Kunstmuseum Düsseldorf im Ehrenhof, Germany
• Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe, Hamburg, Germany
• Designmuseum, Helsinki, Finland
• Brooklyn Museum, New York, USA
• Liliane and David M. Stewart Collection, Musée du Château Dufresne, Montreal, Canada
• Victoria and Albert Museum, London, United Kingdom
• Vitra Design Museum, Weil am Rhein, Germany

Solo exhibitions: Helsinki Kunsthalle, Finland (2003) and Kunstindustrimuseet, Oslo, Norway (2004).

Among his most important designs still in production:

Mushroom (1960) - stool - Adelta

Ball Chair (1963) - armchair

Pastil Chair (1967) - seat - Adelta

Bubble Chair (1968) - hanging chair - Adelta

Tomato Chair (1971) - armchair

Pony (1973) - seat

Copacabana Table (1991) - table - Adelta

Screw Tables (1992) - side tables

Parabel Table (1994) - table - Adelta

Formula Chair (1998) - seat - Adelta

Double Bubble (2001) - lamp - Melaja Ltd

Focus Chair (2002) - seat

Tipi (2002)