Grandessa rocking chair, designed by Lena Larsson, Nesto, Sweden, 1960s

Description

Grandessa rocking chair, designed by Lena Larsson, Nesto, Sweden, 1960s

The Grandessa rocking chair was designed by Lena Larsson for the Swedish manufacturer Nesto in the 1960s. The chair is made of beech wood and finished in black lacquer. The solid form of the piece is at the same time visually light. The high back flows smoothly into the armrests. The entire construction was designed to provide harmonious rocking.

Lena Larsson was born in 1919 and died in 2000. She was a Swedish interior designer, known as a pioneer of the unconventional, environmentally friendly solutions she created. In her memoirs, she wrote, I wanted to revolutionise the furniture industry. She designed many children’s pieces of furniture whose forms were surprising because she took into account what children are really like rather than how adults perceive them. She was a member of the Rabenius family, which belonged to the Swedish nobility. She trained as a cabinetmaker at Carl Malmsten’s craft school. She then worked for the cabinetmaker Elias Svedberg, with whom she designed furniture. At the beginning of the 1940s, she was employed by Svenska Slöjdföreningen, now Svensk Forum, and Svenska Arkitekters Riksförbund. Together with the architects Anders-William Olsson and Mårten Larsson, she created a single-family house Skal och kärna. From 1956 to 1960, she was editor-in-chief of the interior decoration magazine Allt i hemmet. As artistic director at the Nordiska Kompaniet, store, she used her knowledge to create interior design solutions that simplified the domestic lifestyle. NK was a special store that sold experimental furniture for the whole family. It also became a forum for ideas and products to be tested by young designers. In this way, she paved the way for both established and emerging designers and furniture manufacturers. Despite her achievements and talent, her name is not as widely recognised as those of many of her male counterparts.

The chair is in original vintage condition, with minor signs of use consistent with its age. The seat is 41 cm high.