Better... By Design

Swedish design has often set the tone for global trends, and the Stockholm Design Week is the best place to catch the emerging trends.

- Suman Tarafdar

Sweden is heaven. Or so its proponents have asserted over the years, pointing to generous welfare programmes, lowest levels of inequality (income and gender) and the gripping Nordic Noir! For distant corners of the world, ABBA had helped put the northern nation on the map. However, many may have arguably overlooked Sweden’s greatest contribution to improving our daily lives – design.

Minimalist lines, organic shapes, pastel/neutral shades – Scandinavian design has over the previous century often led in innovating with the focus on making the lived experience more comfortable and holistic, increasingly integrating principles such as sustainability into design. Commercial brands have helped spread this image – think Ikea, Nokia, H&M, Volvo, Ericsson, Saab, Scania, Skanska, Hästens, Electrolux and many more. A new wave of tech brands – Spotify, Truecaller, Bluetooth – are showcasing the rising number of unicorns from Stockholm. Without exception, each has been noted for their designs as well. Specific products have become legendary such as Gillis Lundgren’s Billy bookshelf for IkEA (1979). The desire for more ergonomic chairs led to several legends – Artur Lindqvist’s garden chair A2 in 1930, Bruno Mathsson’s Sadelgjord and Pernilla, Björn Dahlström’s kaskad outdoor series for Nola to Färg & Blanche’s Emma and Matti klenell’s rattan chair – all set new benchmarks – globally. Textile patterns, cutlery shapes, glassware, and of course a myriad range of household items are on the trendy list.