Presenting this year’s Ung Svensk Form scholarship winners!

Urban glaze made from construction rubble, new taxonomies of demolition salvage and cultivable furniture whose frames have sprouted out of old food scraps – those are just a few of this year’s Ung Svensk Form scholarship winners who have demonstrated a clear ambition to make use of what is available around us, in terms of both material and knowledge.

Ung Svensk Form 2023 opens today at Greenhouse at the Stockholm Furniture Fair, which means it is time to announce this year’s scholarship winners. The award is constantly expanding its collaborative network to promote young designers in Sweden. This year marks the award’s 25th jubilee and includes a record number of scholarship donors – a whole 10 scholarships are being handed out today within the framework of Ung Svensk Form 2023!

– Since its inception in Malmö in 1998, Ung Svensk Form has evolved into a unique platform that captures and drives the force for development within the field of design. In our constant pursuit of new solutions, we must embrace experimentation, courage and emotions, which makes our job of boosting new talents more important than ever, says Caroline B Le Bongoat, business developer at the City of Malmö and chairwoman of the jury at Ung Svensk Form.

Winners of Ung Svensk Form 2023 scholarships
In addition to projects whose sense of nature and recycling serves to lessen our climate anxiety are also numerous projects that convey a sense of security in these days of general unrest – a digital dream house accessible from wherever you may be in the world, a spindle back chair as embracing as a baby’s cot with a seat cushion like the soothing sway of a boat. Here are the 2023 scholarship winners!

Arvet
Arvet’s travel scholarship provides an insight into a global knowledge exchange on architecture. This includes architecture’s social responsibility and its understanding of the renewable material of wood. The Arvet Travel Scholarship 2023 goes to Christoffer Jansson for his project Uncanny Spaces.

– Christoffer both questions and finds new solutions and we are delighted by his way of studying and relating to our current time, says Sandra Frank, co-founder and head of marketing at Global Movement at Arvet.

IKEA
IKEA are offering one Ung Svensk Form finalist a work scholarship at IKEA of Sweden for five months with salary and accommodations in Älmhult. The IKEA Scholarship 2023 goes to Simon Bågstam for his project Essing.

– Through his exploration of one crafting tradition transferred onto another, Simon has achieved something beautiful. In a well executed way, he has combined the craft of boat building with furniture design. Such transfer of knowledge between different crafts lies close to our hearts here at IKEA and has resulted in many of our most important innovations, says Eva Lilja Löwenhielm and Johan Ejdemo, design managers at IKEA of Sweden.

Kvadrat
Kvadrat are awarding a monetary scholarship along with the chance to hold an exhibition in Kvadrat’s showroom in Stockholm. The Kvadrat Scholarship 2023 goes to Laura Kjær for her project Super Superficial.

– We find Super Superficial appealing as a piece of furniture, while its design borders on art. We like how Laura uses colour and shapes to give the piece a strong expression and how she allows it to make a statement. For us, design and art are strongly connected, and it feels like this piece manages to balance both parts in a playful way. It is clearly a true work of craftsmanship, says Kristoffer Magnusson Wahl, country manager at Kvadrat.

Lammhults Möbel
Lammhults Möbel are awarding a scholarship in the form of prototype production, access to Lammhult’s product development team and publicity for the project during the scholarship year. The Lammhults Möbel Scholarship 2023 goes to Simon Mattisson for his project Granland.

– Granland is so much more than a piece of sculpted furniture. The fact that Simon created something beautiful out of damaged wood by exploring the material and using a new production method with focus on 3D technology and circular furniture production perfectly aligns with our values of playfulness, innovation and sustainability. We think these aspects are very important when we personally work with product development, says Åsa van Drumpt, CEO at Lammhults Möbel.

Massive Entertainment
A scholarship that includes a six-month paid internship focused on the design of clothing, accessories and skins in the game production at Massive Entertainment. The Massive Entertainment Scholarship 2023 goes to Vanja Ivarsson for her project Restless Sleeper.

– With its wealth of ideas, Vanja’s bold entry Restless Sleeper captured our interest. Her artistic virtual world radiates creativity and knowledge that sparks wonder. It is our great pleasure to welcome a new young talent like Vanja to Massive Entertainment, says Marie Isacsson, concept artist for The Division 2 at Massive Entertainment.

The Röhsska Museum and Dynamo Väst
Through a paid employment at the Röhsska Museum with partners from the Dynamo Väst network, the winner of this scholarship will gain insight into how designers and artists can play key roles in public environment projects. The Röhsska Museum and Dynamo Väst Scholarship 2023 goes to Axel Danhard for his project På nya Spår.

– The Röhsska Museum and Dynamo Väst are very much looking forward to collaborating with Axel Danhard. Through this work scholarship, we want to share how we synchronise our businesses and commissions in the public environment, as well as see how Axel can contribute with his practice and observations during his employment period. It is our goal to develop our work methods and approaches in how we tackle projects within the national policy for designed living environment, says Nina Due, director at the Röhsska Museum.

Swedish Tanners
All participants of Ung Svensk Form, as well as some new members, are invited to a workshop trip to one of Sweden’s four tanneries. During the visit, participants have a chance to apply for two work scholarships of 3–5 days and 20,000 SEK each.

– The intersection between young creativity and traditional industry is where challenging ideas and new areas of application sprout. Together we find ways to let the knowledge we’ve cultivated since ancient times find a place in today’s urgent need for sustainable materials and production methods, says Torbjörn Lundin, vice chairman and co-founder of Swedish Tanners.

Stockholm Furniture Fair
The winner of this scholarship will receive their own exhibition booth at Greenhouse 2024. The Stockholm Furniture Fair Scholarship 2023 goes to Sophie Jungkvist for her project Woven change, shifting expressions.

– The Greenhouse jury have reached their verdict among the Ung Svensk Form participants and we are pleased to offer Sophie Jungkvist the next step on her road to becoming a designer – an exclusive booth at Greenhouse, says Hanna Nova Beatrice, project area manager, Stockholm Furniture Fair and Stockholm Design Week. Many of today’s leading designers have started their careers here, and many have seen their creations put into production thanks to Greenhouse. We wish Sophie all the best and we look forward to welcoming her to Greenhouse 2024.

String Furniture
This scholarship includes a cash amount as well as the chances to develop a prototype and be featured in String Furniture’s booth at one of the major furniture fairs. The String Furniture Scholarship 2023 goes to Daniel Odentia for his project Fager.

– Fager is deceptively simple, with a strong duality: it has a very functional dimension with an expression of stability, yet a design that is full of character and positivity. To us, Fager was a real standout and we sensed a kindred spirit, says Bo Hellberg, CMO at String Furniture.

Swedish Wood
Winners of this scholarship are invited to an inspirational and educational trip through central Sweden, where they will learn about the importance of the forest and its interaction through the entire value chain. The Swedish Wood Scholarship 2023 goes to:

Simon Bågstam – Essing

Olof Davidsson – Spread

Ellen Hallström – Remain – a sofa with focus on longevity

Elise Aldén & Johnny Höglund – Grantoppen

Laura Kjaer – Super superficial

Frida MacDavitt Wallin – Sandhagen 2

Simon Mattisson – Granland

Olle Sahlqvist – Biomimicry furniture design

– We believe in young designers. We also believe in dialogue and knowledge as important cornerstones of all development. This year’s entries demonstrate a high level of design, where exploratory and innovative projects protect our environment and at the same time aim for a long-term sustainable transition, says Björn Nordin, Director Architecture & Design at Swedish Wood.

All winners of Ung Svensk Form 2023, along with the jury statements, can be found at ungsvenskform.se. Press photos for all entries can be found HERE.

Tour schedule 2023
After the Greenhouse exhibition at Stockholm Furniture Fair, Ung Svensk Form 2023 will embark on its nationwide tour. Please see schedule below.

• 7 – 11 February, Stockholm Furniture Fair / Greenhouse
• 2 March – 16 April, IKEA Museum, Älmhult
• 26 May – 4 June, Sara Kulturhus, Skellefteå
• 2 September – 5 November, Textile Museum, Textile Fashion Center, Borås
• 16 November – 11 February, Malmö Museer, Malmö

Ung Svensk Form 2023 is a co-production between Svensk Form and IKEA Museum. The project is carried out in collaboration with IKEA of Sweden, the City of Malmö, Stockholm Furniture Fair, Swedish Wood and a long list of exhibition organisers and scholarship donors. The exhibition opens in February 2023 at Greenhouse during Stockholm Furniture Fair.

For more information about the Ung Svensk Form project, please contact:
Karin Wiberg, project manager, Ung Svensk Form
karin.wiberg@svenskform.se
+46 (0)70 365 63 25

Elin Seittu, head of communications, Svensk Form
elin.seittu@svenskform.se
+46 (0)72 323 31 48

For more information about the scholarships, please contact:

Sandra Frank, co-founder and head of marketing, Global Movement at Arvet
sandra.frank@arvet.se

Eva Lilja Löwenhielm, design manager, IKEA of Sweden
eva.lilja.lowenhielm@inter.ikea.com

Kristoffer Magnusson Wahl, country manager, Kvadrat
krma@kvadrat.org

Åsa van Drumpt, CEO, Lammhults Möbel
asa.vandrumpt@lammhults.se

Marie Isacsson, concept artist for The Division 2 at Massive Entertainment
marie.isacsson@massive.se

Nina Due, director at the Röhsska Museum
nina.due@kultur.goteborg.se

Hanna Nova Beatrice, project area manager, Stockholm Furniture Fair
hannanova.beatrice@stockholmsmassan.se

Bo Hellberg, CMO at String Furniture
bo@stringfurniture.com

Björn Nordin, head of architecture and design, Swedish Wood
bjorn.nordin@svenskttra.se

Torbjörn Lundin, co-founder and vice chairman, Swedish Tanners
torbjorn.lundin@me.com