Milan 2014: British fashion designer Paul Smith has applied his iconic striped fabrics to a selection of furniture by legendary Danish designer Hans J. Wegner, which will be presented in Milan next month.
To celebrate the 100th anniversary of Wegner's birth, Paul Smith picked his favourite pieces from those produced by Danish furniture brand Carl Hansen & Søn for the limited edition collection.
The Big Stripe and Stripes fabrics designed by Smith for American textile brand Maharam were used to upholster products including the Shell Chair, Wing Chair and Wishbone Chair, which were created by the Danish Modernist designer between the late 1940s and the 1960s.
Smith's striped fabrics are woven from worsted wool in a range of colours and the two designs offer different densities of pattern. The Stripes pattern was designed in 2006, while the Big Stripe design launched last year.
The sculptural Wing Chair, with its characteristic cross seam on the backrest, has been fully upholstered in a predominately purple and green version of the Stripes fabric and a blue and red version of the Big Stripe.
Earthy tones characterise the Stripes fabric used to cover the seat pad of the Wishbone Chair from 1949.
Two versions of the Big Stripe design are used to cover the cushions and armrests of the CH163 sofa designed in 1965.
The back and seat of the CH28 armchair and the Shell Chair are upholstered in sections of the Big Stripe fabric, which has a repeat of almost 2.5 metres.
The fabrics provide a bold injection of colour that stands out against the wooden frames of the chairs.
The furniture will be displayed at the Paul Smith Milan shop during the city's upcoming design week, as well as at Carl Hansen & Søn's booth at the fair and its city centre showroom.
As part of a year of celebrations of Wegner's work, Carl Hansen & Søn changed its logo to one created by Wegner in 1950 and has begun producing his CH88 chair for the first time.
An exhibition of Paul Smith's work that features objects such as a MINI car and a pair of skis decorated with his signature stripes is currently on show at London's Design Museum.
The following press release is from Paul Smith:
Paul Smith and Maharam collaborate with Carl Hansen & Søn
To celebrate the hundredth anniversary of the birth of renowned Danish designer Hans J. Wegner, Paul Smith and Maharam are collaborating with Carl Hansen & Søn – the world's largest manufacturer of furniture designed by Hans J. Wegner – on a limited edition collection of some of Wegner's most iconic works.
With a pioneering and creative Modernist aesthetic, Wegner is best known for his idiosyncratic chair designs, such as the Wishbone Chair. Created in 1950 this piece, with its characteristic Y-shaped back support, became one of his greatest successes; other definitive designs include the three-legged Shell Chair, the minimalist CH28, the CH163 sofa and contemporary classic, the Wing Chair.
Paul Smith has personally selected his favourite classic Hans J. Wegner pieces to launch a capsule collection that gives the designs an injection of vibrancy, upholstered in 'Big Stripe' and new colours of 'Stripes' by Paul Smith. Designed by Paul Smith in collaboration with Maharam, these two worsted wool textiles explore stripes at dramatically different scales, conveying Paul Smith's imaginative approach to colour and proportion.
The collection will be presented at the Paul Smith Milan shop from 8th to 13th April during the Salone del Mobile, as well as at Carl Hansen & Søn's booth at the fair and its city centre showroom. Additionally, a touring exhibition visiting Tokyo, New York and London will offer further opportunities to view the collection. The pieces will be available at selected Paul Smith shops worldwide, while the textiles are available in Europe through Kvadrat.