3daysofdesign 2023 – Review
Wonderland with profundity
In 2013 Signe Byrdal Terenziani founded 3daysofdesign and started with four Danish brands: Montana, Erik Jørgensen (now owned by Fredericia Furniture), Anker & Co and Kvadrat. What was once an insider tip has now grown into an international festival: this year 280 participants exhibited in 13 festival districts, from established brands to young designers, some of whom are presenting their work to the public for the first time. "The platform we have created is for mutual inspiration, as a presentation space and is not for profit. We are a community that helps each other," says Signe Byrdal Terenziani in an interview with Stylepark. Her sheer inexhaustible energy and warmth not only sustain the respective team of the edition, but also the international visitors who reliably travel to Copenhagen every year. Even if some objects could already be seen a few weeks earlier in Milan, the 3daysofdesign are a fixed date in the industry calendar for a reason. The festival was and is a "safe space", a shelter for creatives that offers ideal conditions for networking, presentation and exchange. That opens the doors to showrooms and workshops, that always receives its guests with perfect organisation and lovingly prepared installations and offers them such a hearty welcome that even a restless schedule becomes enjoyable.
The design wonderland that the 3daysofdesign offer year after year also includes numerous events beyond the product presentation: from fantastic dinners to a visit to the Louisiana Museum of Art to an exclusive roller coaster ride at the Tivoli amusement park. Travelling between stops by bike or boat in a metropolis that is considered one of the most liveable cities in the world and has been named the UNESCO World Architecture Capital 2023 is also an experience every time. The dynamics of the city, which is dominated by cyclists instead of cars, the aesthetic lifestyle and design-oriented culture of the Danes, the many small and large attentions of the hosts, the relaxed atmosphere and the appreciative interaction are all part of the successful concept of the 3daysofdesign. The second major component is the thematic diversity that the festival offers across the disciplines of design, architecture and art, including the naturalness of weaving into these forward-looking ideas for sustainable design and production processes. "If you want to dream, you have to wake up", says Signe Byrdal Terenziani, a line that has accompanied her for a long time. Thanks to her passionate commitment to creativity, the design scene in Copenhagen is wide awake and realises her dreams, which we are able to share during 3daysofdesign.
Ten highlights of the 3daysofdesign 2023
Ukurant
Josefine Krabbe, Kasper Kyster, Kamma Rosa Schytte and Lærke Ryom founded the exhibition platform and creative community Ukurant in 2019 to strengthen the position of young design talent. With a focus on unconventional furniture and furnishings, this showcases new design possibilities and links the established scene with the emerging one. A wood workshop in a historic building on the Refshaleøen site, where ships were once restored and built, served as the stage here. This year, 18 works were on display, ranging from material experiments in the form of egg yolk-based polymer, which Adam Bialek uses as the basis for his lamp "Our Beloved and Sacred Sun", to the assembled "Offcut Tables" by Laerke Ryom, for which he uses grained end-grain wood that is a by-product of production at Dinesen. Also impressive was the "computational log chair" by Matthias Gschwendtner, which is made with a combination of 3D scanning, computer design and robotic production, but both haptically and visually looks like furniture whose components were hand-carved.
Refshaleøen Hub – Materials of Tomorrow
In collaboration with Space10, Material Matters and Office Kim Lenschow, the 3daysofdesign offered a creative hub in the unique setting of the former industrial quarter. The hub offered both an exhibition on the future of materials in cooperation with Bonnie Hvillum from Natural Material Studio and a symposium with contributions from, among others, Caroline Till, co-founder of the futurology agency FranklinTill, the designer Ineke Hans or Jeroen Muijsers, CEO and co-founder of the company Flocus, which promotes sustainable textile solutions: "3daysofdesign is a platform for people to meet, network and be in-spired. This year, to mark the 10th edition of 3daysofdesign, we are excited to include a dedicated symposium that shares the innovation within materials and the pioneers that are pushing for solutions that are better for both people and the planet. It marks a new chapter for the festival, where we not only celebrate design, but also challenge ourselves to rethink how design can truly make a difference in how we live more sustainably.," says Signe Byrdal Terenziani, CEO of 3daysofdesign. Interaction in public space and the opportunity for joint discussion was also possible at a 30-metre-long table created in collaboration with Spacon & X, Petersen Tegl, Barlby Carlsson and +Halle.
Louis Poulsen
The glass art studio Home in Heven, in collaboration with Elliot Walker of Blowfish Glass, offers new readings of the Pale Rose Collection by Poul Henningsen and Vilhelm Lauritzen: Coloured glass and striking details such as horns, swirls and tentacles literally cast the classic lamps in a new light. "It is an honour for us to work with Louis Poulsen and the legendary designs of Poul Henningsen and Vilhelm Lauritzen. Henningsen's approach to design is a great source of inspiration for us, as is his energy to take the old and appropriate it. Just like him, we didn't go to design school, but started working from our experiences in fashion, art and film, which has resulted in a very practical approach to our design," say Breanna Box and Peter Dupont from Home in Heven. The unique pieces will be auctioned off shortly, with the majority of the proceeds donated to charity.
PP Møbler Showroom
The furniture manufacturer PP Møbler has opened its first flagship store and chosen one of the most beautiful buildings in Copenhagen for it: the listed Lagerkælder 3. Svenn Eske Kristensen designed the brick building in 1969 for Carlsberg Byen, which is decorated with 64 gold-leafed panes. Behind these, the tanks filled with beer were once stored. PP Møbler has now moved into the ground floor of the building and is showing both insights into the traditional carpentry craft and current ideas – for example, the limited anniversary edition of 70 Flag Halyard Chairs with a bright yellow base and feet made of ash wood. In addition, the family-owned company is currently introducing a new upholstery fabric from the pen of textile designer Lykke Bloch Kjær, which contrasts the soft gradients of the wood structures with bold colours such as ultraviolet. Each piece of furniture is made to order by PP Møbler. "If we take care of our materials and each other, we can create beautiful things," says Ejnar Pedersen, co-founder of PP Møbler.
PP Møbler Flagship Store
Bryggernes Plads 11
Carlsberg Byen
1799 Copenhagen
"Boa" by Stefan Diez for Hay
Traditional Japanese construction with bamboo provided Stefan Diez an inspiration for the design of a conference table: "Boa" for Hay. Made with a tubular frame of recycled and extruded aluminium, the table is very lightweight and can thus be quickly moved around the room. Depending on your needs, the structure can be equipped with accessories for power supply and cable storage. "Boa" is also good for a surprise – if the table looks thoroughly classic from a distance, the industrial charm and ingenious details of the structure become apparent when you look under the rectangular tabletop.
Georg Jensen x David Thulstrup
The architect and designer David Thulstrup has created the "Penumbra" design object made of silver for Georg Jensen: Consisting of a rectangular exterior and an oval centre that sinks into a hollow structure, the design displays a particularly clear appeal thanks to the perfect symmetry of the shapes. "The Georg Jensen team and I wanted to create something that placed more emphasis on design and aesthetics than on function. Due to the strong contrast between the rectangular outline and the oval centre, both inspired by selected designs from the Georg Jensen archive, Penumbra succeeds in standing out as a sculptural and eye-catching object," says David Thulstrup. During his visit to the archive, he was inspired, among other things, by the recurring use of a significant oval shape in the house that dates back to the 1910s. A detail he combined with the taut, functionalist shapes from Sigvard Bernadotte's well-known designs for Georg Jensen. At the 3daysofdesign, an installation entirely immersed in silver was created for the presentation, which made the object seem almost sacred.
Koyori
At the 3daysofdesign, the young Japanese design brand Koyori presented an installation whose clarity was based on the structure of a traditional Japanese house. Placed in a Zen garden, two new pieces of wooden furniture from the cooperation with the designer duo GamFratesi were presented: The oval and rectangular tables "Miau" and the chair "Edaha". Ronan Bouroullec also presented the new "Nei" and "Usurai" tables. Seamless transitions, gentle curves and a particularly precise finish characterise the designs: "Function, durability and beauty are three keywords for which Koyori stands", says Executive Director Koda Munetoshi. Koyori was founded in 2022 by leading Japanese furniture and interior design manufacturers and was shaped by product and furniture designer Jasper Morrison, among others, who acted as Art Directing Advisor.
Andersen Furniture / Mater
The merger of Andersen Furniture and Randers+Radius into a joint appearance under the name Andersen Furniture created a better clarity in the communication of the product range at the 3daysofdesign. Andersen Furniture's commitment to sustainable products is also focused: For each felt shell in the "Tono" chair collection, for example, 250 plastic bottles are recycled, and the "Mood" chair collection is certified with the EU Ecolabel.
Completely focused on recyclable design since its founding is also Mater, which this year presented the exhibition "What a Waste!" in the historic Helligåndshuset (House of the Holy Spirit). Using cutting-edge technology and its patented recycled material Matek®, Mater showed how waste can be transformed into furniture – such as for the new Lily Table Collection and Compound Chair Collection designed by Copenhagen's OEO Studio. Together with Tetra Pak and Arka, the team is also working on new initiatives for the circular economy. In parallel, Mater is currently exploring the possibilities of recycling old textiles, for example from hotels, for furniture production.
Atelier Collection by Reform
For the Atelier Collection, Reform invited four creative minds to the 3daysofdesign to interpret four elementary materials – glass, ceramics, metal and wood – and to design furniture handles from them. Nina Nørgaard (glass), Yukari Hotta (porcelain), Alberte Tranberg (metal) and Maria Bruun (wood) not only created everyday objects with an individual character, but also explored the tension between craftsmanship and industrial production. All new handles are compatible with the "Plain" and "Shaker" collections by Reform.
Karakter
This year, the Danish design brand Karakter presented a series of re-editions of its classics by Italian designers, such as the "Scarpa Lounge Chair" by Afra and Tobia Scarpa from 1966 or the "Plexi" lamp by Angelo Mangiarotti, which was presented for the first time in 1962. Established craft was translated by weaver and textile artist Karin Carlander into new objects, such as for the "Shuttle Rug", a rectangular carpet made of paper yarn. The company thus showed in an exemplary way how, on the one hand, appreciation for existing design can be linked with new ideas and, on the other hand, how elements from Italian and Scandinavian design can be combined to create an exciting result.
Tip: &tradition has created a comprehensive installation at its headquarters on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of 3daysofdesign, in which the many facets of the brand can be ideally experienced. Each room is dedicated to a different cooperation or theme and provides valuable impressions of the creative design process – from the new collections by Jaime Hayon to the impressive backdrops for the presentation of the iconic "Flowerpot lamp" by Verner Panton and the "JU1 lamp" by Jørn Utzon.
Absolutely worth seeing was also the special exhibition 'Still Life 2' by Michael Anastassiades for Anker & Co as well as the "Three" presentation by the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC), which invited designers Pia Högman, Anne Brandhøj and Anna MariaØfstedal Eng to create with red oak, maple and cherry, woods that are little used in the industry. According to AHEC, disrupted global supply chains and the climate crisis require a rethink of current wood sourcing and a reorientation towards more environmentally sustainable hardwoods. "Three" thus showed exemplary ways to work with them.
