Scandinavian modern (c.1930s to present) Also know as Swedish modern, this style emerged at the same time as modernism in the 1930s. It was interrupted by the Depression and World War II, and then finally reached its height in the 1950s.

In this article

Style Influences The names

At the time Get the look What to invest in

Where to see it Further reading

It took the basic concept of modernism and fused it with traditional materials. The result is beautifully made furniture in organic shapes chiefly fashioned from wood, which is in abundance in Scandinavia. Its basic philosophy 'beauty for all' has arguably been continued into the present day with the Swedish phenomenon of IKEA.

• white
• accents of colour
• blonde wood
• natural materials
• well designed, functional furniture

• modernism - particularly Mies van der Rohe and Le Corbusier
• Danish neoclasssicism

• Alvar Aalto - Finnish architect, furniture maker and all-round designer
• Arne Jacobsen - Danish designer of the 'Ant' chair made infamous by Christine Keeler sitting astride one in the 1960s
• Timo Sarpaneva - ceramics and glassware
• Kaare Klint - Danish furniture maker

• 1934 Tender is the Night written by F Scott Fitzgerald
• 1939 Gone With the Wind arrives in cinemas
• 1952 first hydrogen bomb tested by United States
• 1954 food rationing ended
• 1955 Warsaw Pact

• Flooring - floors should be wooden but using good quality wood with the grain showing through. This has developed into laminated floorboards.
• Colour schemes - colours are white, white and more white.
• Accessories - add dashes of colour in the form of paintings and modern art.
• Furniture - look for furniture in blonde wood in curvy, organic shapes often teamed with tubular steel and leather.
• Flowers - flowers should be in stark, architectural shapes such as lilies, orchids; or cacti.

• Ant, Egg or Swan chairs by Arne Jacobsen. Originals can still be picked up second hand if you're lucky - good reproductions are also available
• Alvar Aalto furniture - the company Artek in Helsinki still sells his designs
• glassware by Aino Marsio-Aalto
• glassware 'Savoy' - made for interior of Savoy hotel in Helsinki
• Marimekko textiles - Finland

• St Catherine's College, Oxford - designed by Arne Jacobsen

• Alvar Aalto and the International Style by Paul David Pearson (Secker & Warburg)
• Alvar Aalto by Karl Fleig (Thames & Hudson)

© Image copyright:
Main image courtesy of IKEA.
Maija & Kristiina Isola textile design image courtesy www.marimekko.fi
Alvar Aalto glass vase image courtesy of www.ScandiaImports.com
Images of Arne Jacobsen's Egg and Ant chairs and Alvar Aalto's chair courtesy of www.scandinaviandesign.com