Swedish Society of Crafts and Design

Swedish Society of Crafts and Design
Name	Swedish Society of Crafts and Design
Native name	Svenska slöjdföreningen
Formation	1845
Type	Professional association
Headquarters	Stockholm
Location	Sweden
Leader title	Chair

Swedish Society of Crafts and Design is a Swedish association established in the nineteenth century to promote craftsmanship, industrial design, and applied arts across Scandinavia. It has engaged with prominent figures and institutions in Stockholm, Gothenburg, Malmö, Copenhagen, Helsinki and Oslo and has influenced museum practice at institutions such as Nationalmuseum, Moderna Museet, and the Röhsska Museum. The Society has interacted with design movements and organizations including the Arts and Crafts movement, Deutscher Werkbund, and Bauhaus while fostering links to companies such as IKEA, Ericsson, Volvo, and Orrefors.

History

Founded in 1845 amid European debates involving the Arts and Crafts movement, the Society developed alongside contemporaries like the V&A and the Rijksmuseum. Early patrons included members of the Royal Court of Sweden and industrialists from Stockholm and Gothenburg. Through the late nineteenth century the Society worked with designers influenced by William Morris, Charles Rennie Mackintosh, and the Deutscher Werkbund. In the interwar years engagement with Walter Gropius, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, and the Bauhaus network informed curriculum reform and exhibitions. Postwar collaboration linked the Society to Scandinavian design milestones involving Alvar Aalto, Arne Jacobsen, and Kaj Franck. More recent decades saw partnerships with corporate actors like IKEA, Orrefors, Svenskt Tenn, and cultural policymakers from Stockholm City Museum and the Swedish Arts Council.

Mission and Activities

The Society's charter promotes craftsmanship and industrial design in partnership with institutions such as Nationalmuseum, Moderna Museet, Röhsska Museum, and universities including Konstfack, Umeå Institute of Design, and Royal Institute of Technology. Activities have ranged from advising ministries like the Ministry of Culture (Sweden) to curating exhibitions with galleries such as Galerie Nordenhake, Liljevalchs konsthall, and collaborations with festivals like Stockholm Design Week and Svenska Form. It maintains professional networks linking designers from Finland, Denmark, Norway, Germany, United Kingdom, and United States and interacts with trade organizations such as Swedish Trade Federation and foundations including the Rosenborg Foundation.

Notable Members and Leadership

Across its history the Society has counted artists, craftsmen, and industrial leaders connected to names like Carl Larsson, Bruno Mathsson, Bror Geijer Göthe, Gunnar Asplund, Sigvard Bernadotte, Carl Malmsten, and Josef Frank. Chairs and board members have included figures from Konstfack and the Royal Swedish Academy of Arts as well as directors associated with Nationalmuseum and curators from Röhsska Museum. Collaborators extend to international practitioners such as Alvar Aalto, Arne Jacobsen, Hans Wegner, Finn Juhl, and corporate designers from Volvo Cars, Electrolux, and Ericsson.

Exhibitions and Publications

The Society has organized exhibitions in venues such as Nationalmuseum, Moderna Museet, Röhsska Museum, Liljevalchs konsthall, and temporary spaces at Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair. Exhibitions have highlighted work by makers associated with Orrefors, Kosta Boda, Iittala, Kähler, Royal Copenhagen, and Rörstrand. Publications include catalogues and periodicals circulated alongside journals like Form, Domus, Design Quarterly, and collaborations with publishers such as Arkitektur Förlag and Thames & Hudson. Projects have featured essays referencing theorists and critics linked to Niklas Luhmann, Walter Benjamin, Jane Jacobs, and commentators in Dagens Nyheter and Svenska Dagbladet.

Education and Training Programs

The Society has partnered with educational institutions such as Konstfack, Umeå Institute of Design, Beckmans College of Design, Royal Institute of Technology, University of Gothenburg, and Luleå University of Technology to run workshops, apprenticeships, and residencies. Programs have engaged master craftsmen from workshops in Småland, Bohuslän, and Dalarna and collaborated with vocational schools tied to Arbetsförmedlingen initiatives and foundations like the Ax:son Johnson Foundation. Exchanges included links to Design Academy Eindhoven, Rhode Island School of Design, University of the Arts London, and Politecnico di Milano.

Collections and Awards

The Society curates collections of textiles, ceramics, glass, metalwork, and furniture that have been lent to museums such as Nationalmuseum, Röhsska Museum, Nordiska museet, and Värmlands Museum. It administers prizes and recognitions aligned with awards like the Prince Eugen Medal, Litteris et Artibus, and national design prizes in collaboration with corporate sponsors including IKEA Foundation and cultural institutions like Swedish Arts Council. Collections feature makers associated with Carl Malmsten, Gunnar Nylund, Stig Lindberg, Anna Petrus, and contemporary designers represented at Stockholm Furniture Fair.

International Collaboration and Influence

Internationally the Society has engaged with the Deutscher Werkbund, Bauhaus, V&A, Rijksmuseum, Cooper Hewitt, MoMA, Designmuseum Danmark, and networks including World Crafts Council and International Council of Museums. Its members have participated in biennials and fairs such as the Venice Biennale, Milan Triennale, Salone del Mobile, and collaborations with design weeks in London, New York, Copenhagen, Helsinki, and Berlin. Through cross-border projects the Society influenced corporate design strategies at firms like Volvo, Ericsson, Electrolux, and creative platforms associated with H&M and Svenskt Tenn.

Category:Organizations established in 1845