Convincing thousands of people to fly to Sweden in the middle of winter is no small task. But great design has proven a serious draw. This year the 66th edition of Stockholm Design Week (February 6–12), which centers on the Stockholm Furniture and Light Fair, has attracted more than 40,000 attendees from 60 countries. And while many of them surely came for the classics—sustainable, delightfully quiet furnishings built to last a lifetime—just as many are interested in seeing what’s in store from one of Scandinavia’s best renewable resources: young design talent. After exploring the fairgrounds, 80 percent of which are dominated by Scandinavian design, including one section, the Greenhouse, dedicated solely to rising talent, AD presents to you our short list of the show's best new designers from Sweden and the surrounding countries. The current hygge phenomenon has some serious competition.
HAHA
The Swedish design trio HAHA, founded in the summer of 2015, unveiled its first lighting collection in the Greenhouse section of the Stockholm Furniture and Light Fair. The series, which consists of two floor lamps, a table lamp, two wall lamps, a pendant, and a set of candlesticks that can be assembled in a variety of configurations, plays with different finishes on metal, such as sandblasting, anodizing, and oxidizing. hahasthlmom
Alberto Bellamoli
Denmark-based Bellamoli went back to his hometown of Verona, Italy, to learn more about a material he grew up around: terrazzo. While the items in his Collecta series—bowls, tables, and candlesticks—are made in the traditional method, from discarded marble and concrete, Bellamoli plays with scale, using big hunks of stone for visual interest. albertobellamoliom
Lies-Marie Hoffman
Like many Swedish designers, Hoffman places a strong emphasis on sustainable design. For her presentation in the Greenhouse this year, she created sculptural stools from Stockholm's felled park trees, which are otherwise turned into wood chips and burned in a bioenergy factory. l-mom
Nikolai Kotlarczyk
A founding member of Danish design collective Holdbar , the Copenhagen-based designer showcased a series of oxidized brass mirrors called Barocche (Baroque) at this year’s Greenhouse. Inspired by the Catholic ritual of confession, their shapes are informed by the floor plans of Catholic churches. holdbardesigngrouom
Weng Cho Ray
Swedish designer Ray uses her graphic design background to create bold textiles that she block prints by hand. The self-taught artist collaborates frequently with other artists and designers. oowcrom
Katja Beckman
Beckman, who recently completed her master's in craft textile studies at Konstfack, Sweden’s University College of Arts, Crafts and Design, uses her weaving skills to make both tapestries and avant-garde fashion designs. She supplemented her studies in Kyoto, where she focused on Japanese-style textile work. katjabeckman.blogspoom
