The National Building Museum, in partnership with the Danish Embassy in Washington, DC, presents a talk about Danish design and its influence in America from mid-century to the present. How did Danish Modern become a design movement and why is it still relevant today? How does the contemporary orientation towards sustainability relate to mid-century, and what new grounds are contemporary Danish designers and design companies breaking?
Maggie Taft, author of The Chieftain and the Chair: The Rise of Danish Design in Postwar America, will be in conversation with architect and designer Eva Jensen, discussing how Danish design rose to prominence in postwar America. A leader in textile design innovation, Anders Byriel, CEO of Kvadrat, will discuss how contemporary perspectives continue to build on tradition while being distinctly new.
Examples of iconic Danish furniture will be on view at the museum, courtesy of the Danish Embassy in Washington, D.C.
Anders Byriel is the CEO of Kvadrat, a company established in Denmark in 1968 and with deep roots in Scandinavia’s world-famous design tradition. Kvadrat fabrics have been used in important architectural landmarks including the Museum of Modern Art, New York; Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris; Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao; and The Louvre, Abu Dhabi.
Maggie Taft, PhD, is an Art Historian at the University of Chicago and Founding Director of Writing Space, a community-based writing center for artists and designers in Chicago.
Eva Christine Jensen, AIA, MAA is the founder and principal of Eva Jensen Design, a New York-based Architecture and Interior Design Studio focused on residential architecture. Born and raised in Denmark, Eva Jensen studied Architecture at The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, School of Architecture (KADK) in Copenhagen, and at the Politecnico di Milano.