Eva: A Chair With Curves That Evoke The Female Figure

When it comes to interior design (inredning), nearly everyone has heard of the Swedish and Scandinavian schools and the pervasive style called Swedish Modern, or sometimes Swedish modernism. One of its leading names was that of the late Bruno Mathsson. He was born in 1907 into a family of woodworkers in Varnamo, Sweden, and lived until 1988.
Though Mathsson was a student of the craft tradition of his country, he exceeded that as he used shapes and styles that were a reflection of living things, from insects to humans. He wanted his designs to be very practical and comfortable, but his real genius came in making designs that could be both practical and also amazing for their beauty.
Although he made many other types of furniture, he is best known for his chairs and for the practical style of architecture in the last half of his career. Regarding his chairs, he is perhaps most famous for the Pernilla, the Miranda, and the Eva chairs. Almost all of his chair designs have a female name attached to them. This is natural as the curves of the chairs are inspired by the female figure.
The chair design which originally drew attention to him was "the grasshopper." While it was a failure when initially crafted in 1931, it eventually gained wide recognition. The Eva was initially crafted in 1934, and it won the broadest public acceptance and critical applause right away. This chair has two versions, one with a high back and one with a low back. The former is less like his trademark arm chairs than the ones with backs of the more traditional height.
The Eva chair has the clean lines and curves that are common for Mathsson, as well as the webbed upholstery. The original were likely made from beech, but several different types of wood have been used since, and almost anything can be used for the webbing. During wartime they were produced with whatever material could be found, whether it be paper, or hemp, etc.
The Eva chair is still manufactured today as a true classic. Both old and new models still carry hefty price tags, but nearly anyone who's purchased one thinks it's worth the price. The upholstery can be customized with any color scheme desired, and the number of types of wood available is more than generous. Mathsson made chairs until his death in 1988, and over the years continued to make simple but attractive pieces, innovated to suit each age.

By: Richard Guilfoyle

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The Swedish and Scandinavians have had a huge impact on interior design (inredning) and one of it's leading lights was Swede, Bruno Mathsson (1907-1988). He came from a family of woodworkers but grew beyond craft style and developed pieces that added beauty to functionality.