Iconic Chairs and Fabrics by Sven Markelius

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Sven Markelius Chairs
Sven Markelius Chairs

Sven Markeilus (1889- 1972) was a Swedish Architect, Town Planner, and textile designer who was born in Stockholm.

Education

He studied at Kungliga Tekniska Högskolan (KTH Royal Institute of Technology) and Kungliga Konsthögskolan (Royal Institute of Art), Stockholm.

Career

Markelius began his career in the office of Ragnar Östeberg and participated in the Functionalist movement of the mid-1920s. He built apartments, offices and the 1934 concert hall in Hälsingborg. He first won international recognition for his Swedish pavilion at the 1939 ‘New York World’s Fair.’  

Between 1938 and 1944, he was a building administration member of Stockholm. He was the head of the town-planning department responsible for the 1953-59 satellite town Vällingby, which had a central pedestrian zone and various architectural designs.

Vällingby Central Pedestrian Zone

He taught in Stockholm and at Yale University. In the 1950s, Markelius designed simple wooden furniture and printed fabrics with Astrid Sampe, which Nordiska produced in Stockholm.

A sample of his work

Pythagoras Drapery Fabric by Sven Markelius (MoMA)
Pythagoras Drapery Fabric by Sven Markelius (MoMA)
Pythagoras Drapery Fabric by Sven Markelius (MoMA)
Markelius fabric sample (model K288) by Sven markelius (MoMA)

Sources

Byars, M., & Riley, T. (2004). The design encyclopedia. Laurence King Publishing.

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