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The work of the new designers at Kosta Boda, the artist couple Åsa Jungnelius and Ludvig Löfgren, is expected to draw special attention during this exhibit. But the "old master" Kjell Engman is also represented with his imaginative glass creations. In particular, the feminine and avant-garde glass objects of the young artist Åsa Jungnelius have received an enthusiastic reception in Sweden.

While Kosta Boda glass tends to be colourful and fanciful, the emphasis in Orrefors’ elegant glass creations is on clear crystal with masterfully balanced form and finishing. Ingegerd Råman, the grand dame of Swedish crystal design, is of course on view in this exhibit as well as Erika Lagerbielke, the creative artist of many sales successes (the “Difference” series). The exhibit also includes works of the Finland-born Martti Rytkönen, who is well-known for his sophisticated, innovative glass objects. For the last two years the very successful Swedish artist and jewellery designer Efva Attling has also been working for Orrefors. The result is a wonderful symbiosis of glass and silver.

With its Kosta Boda glassworks (founded in 1742), the southern Swedish town Kosta is often called the "cradle of Swedish glassmaking”. It is home to a unique industry which combines high-level craftsmanship with art and avant-garde design. Orrefors (founded in 1898), is known for its art glass and has been at the forefront of Swedish design since the 1920s. Through its combination of clear crystal and evolutionary design, Orrefors has contributed to the worldwide reputation of Swedish glass.

Since 2005 Orrefors Kosta Boda has been part of the Swedish company New Wave Group.

The products of the Group are sold in more than a thousand retail outlets in over thirty countries. Glassworks tourism has developed into a large industry with more than a million visitors a year. Exclusive art glass from Sweden has achieved great renown and both brand names – Kosta Boda and Orrefors – have gained special importance in the definition of the Swedish cultural legacy. At present a multitude of prestigious designers (form givers) are creating a wide assortment of glass: series of drinking glasses and plates, vases and bowls, and objects d’art in limited editions. Art glass is displayed and sold at tradeshows and in galleries and museums throughout the world, often in the presence of the artist. With its remarkable history, Orrefors Kosta Boda is indisputably one of the leading glassmakers in the world.

Berlin, 1909:

Frank worked with the architect Bruno Möhring and during this period also met his future wife Anna Sebenius. In Germany he received his first big contract – to furnish the East Asian Museum in Cologne in 1912. He belonged to the young Viennese avant-garde who especially in the years following 1910 attracted international attention with their architecture, interior design and designs for furniture, textiles and lamps.

At the World Exposition in Paris 1925 he designed the competition entry of the Austrian company “Haus und Garten“. As sole Austrian, Josef Frank contributed to the exhibition “Die Wohnung“ 1927 in Stuttgart – and had a falling out with Le Corbusier and Mies van der Rohe, whose views on home design he did not share.

In the beginning of the 1930s, when the climate of mounting anti-Semitism became too much for Anna Frank, she persuaded her husband to enter a cooperation with Estrid Ericson and her company Svenskt Tenn. In 1933 the Franks moved from Vienna to Stockholm, and Josef Frank continued the fruitful collaboration until his death in 1967.

Josef Frank is still today considered one of the leading designers of Svenskt Tenn, and international interest in him has even increased in recent decades. In particular, the younger generation interested in design has discovered the quality inherent in Frank’s inexhaustible creativity. One of the rediscoverers of Frank was the English-language design magazine “Wallpaper“ in the late 1990s. Josef Frank was an intellectual modernist who objected to all forms of conformity – and not least in the aesthetic design of the home ambience.

The exhibition has been made possible through the cooperation of the Swedish Embassy Berlin, the Jewish Museum Stockholm and Svenskt Tenn, Stockholm, with kind support by Galerie Jacksons (Berlin) and SKF Lubrication Solutions.

Exhibition venue: Felleshus/Pan Nordic Building of the Nordic Embassies, Rauchstr. 1, 10787 Berlin-Tiergarten

Exhibition dates: 20 August – 20 September 2008. Symposium 6 September 2008 in the Felleshus / Pan Nordic Building of the Nordic Embassies