Tapio Wirkkala

On show at GRASSI Museum of Applied Arts Leipzig, 250 objects by Tapio Wirkkala, an icon of Finnish design and one of the most important designers of the 20th century.

Tapio Wirkkala is an icon of Finnish design and one of the most important designers of the 20th century.

After his rise to popularity in the early 1950s with designs based on Finnish nature and translated into clear shapes, Tapio Wirkkala not only characterised the style of Finnish design, but also influenced international design development from the 1950s onwards in the scope of Scandinavian modernity. His œuvre includes objects made of glass, silver, ceramics, as well as furniture, lamps and the design of trade fair stands.

Tapio Wirkkala: Finnish Design. Glass and Silver, installation view at GRASSI Museum of Applied Arts Leipzig, 2016

For his 100th birthday in 2015, the Finnish glass museum Riihimäki organised a work exhibition focusing on Wirkkala’s work in the area of glass and silver. The exhibition has been shown in Spain as well as in Riihimäki so far. In Leipzig, photographs of object photographer Hans Hansen, who has photographed Tapio Wirkkala’s glass objects since their first meeting, as well as photographs of Finnish landscapes by Annett Pée underline the strong nature references of Tapio Wirkkala’s work.

The approximately 250 displayed objects were created between the 1940s and 1970s and are for the majority part of the Kakkonen collection.

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Tapio Wirkkala: Finnish Design. Glass and Silver, installation view at GRASSI Museum of Applied Arts Leipzig, 2016

Tapio Wirkkala: Finnish Design. Glass and Silver, installation view at GRASSI Museum of Applied Arts Leipzig, 2016

Tapio Wirkkala: Finnish Design. Glass and Silver, installation view at GRASSI Museum of Applied Arts Leipzig, 2016

Tapio Wirkkala: Finnish Design. Glass and Silver, installation view at GRASSI Museum of Applied Arts Leipzig, 2016

until 3 October 2016
Tapio Wirkkala: Finnish Design. Glass and Silver
curated by Uta Laurén
GRASSI Museum of Applied Arts Leipzig
Johannisplatz 5-11, Leipzig

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