5 February 2019

Carl Malmsten Archive Collection 2019

Work started in 2016, when the new board of Carl Malmsten AB saw a need to broaden the range and reaffirm the brand. In a dialogue with the licensees, i.e. the companies which produce Carl Malmsten furniture, a consensus emerged and the initiative was set in motion.

The result is presented at the Stockholm Furniture Fair 2019. The premiere collection includes several pieces of furniture and one pattern – from the dear little Putte stool, to an elegant daybed and a Shaker-style display cabinet. Strong lines and superb quality are common features. The collection has been selected from Carl Malmsten’s wonderful treasure-trove archive. Located at Dieselverkstaden in Nacka, the archive holds 20,000 sketches and workshop drawings, photographs and textile samples. Anna and Lars are two strong personalities within the Swedish furniture industry.

Anna Kraitz and Lars Bülow

She is a well-known designer of, e.g. a range of furniture for Källemo, and also active within the Siv & Carl Malmsten Memorial Foundation. He is a furniture designer, co-founder of the furniture company Materia, former managing director of Lammhults, and now runs the Museum of Furniture Studies at Frihamnen in Stockholm. Together, they have shaped the collection in collaboration with the foundation and licensed furniture producers.

What was the highlight of digging through the archive?

Lars: It’s fascinating to see Carl Malmsten’s enormous production – how he and his collaborators worked so consistently during several decades. There is no parallel in Sweden, as far as I know.
Anna: Being able to study another designer’s work at such depth almost made me obsessed. The material surrounding Carl Malmsten is vast since – beside his furniture production – he has written so many texts and books and designed interiors for so many different types of people, places and contexts. The highlight was probably that you can go on digging forever. If you want to.

AND THE MOST DIFFICULT?

Anna: The most difficult part comes after the digging. When everything has to materialise into real physical objects.
Lars: Keeping a straight and strict line in our selection.

Which is your favourite piece from the Carl Malmsten Archive Collection 2019?

Lars: The display cabinet with glass all around.
Anna: I have developed a close relationship with all the pieces of furniture that we selected – including several pieces that have not yet been made but that will hopefully be produced in the future. But if I have to choose one favourite just now, it is the armchair Widemar.