Swedish designers Folkform celebrates Masonite in Svenskt Tenn exhibition

The exhibition ‘’Masonite: Memoriam’’, which opened today, displays a series of cabinets
exclusively designed for Svenskt Tenn by Anna Holmquist and Chandra Ahlsell of the
Swedish design duo Folkform. In the cabinets, original Masonite hardboard from 1929 are
combined with the last few sheets that was made before Sweden’s last Masonite
manufacturer shut down in April 2011.

“When the Masonite manufacturer in Rundvik closed, it was the last of its kind, a downturn that we
want to help counteract by maintaining domestic production as far as we can and by highlighting
quality craftsmanship in our exhibitions, says Thommy Bindefeld, Marketing Manager at Svenskt
Tenn.”

The exhibition features a gathering between the past and the present. Folkform’s four different models of cabinets are displayed along with a number of Svenskt Tenn objects from the same period, including the “Nationalmuseum” cabinet and textile print Terrazzo, both by Josef Frank. “Svenskt Tenn is one of few furniture and interior design firms from the era when the Masonite factory was established, which is still active today,” says designer Anna Holmquist, who founded Folkform along with Chandra Ahlsell. “We wish more people will open their eyes to the fact that production and skills are rapidly leaving the country. Today it is unusual for us as designers to work with Sweden-based production as an option.’’

The Masonite sheets that the cabinets were built from were recently discovered in an old warehouse. These were the very first product samples from 1929, with different colors and textures. In the cabinets, they are combined with new pieces of board manufactured just before the factory was closed down. Each cabinet is unique and will be sold after the exhibition, price range SEK 16,000-75,000. Folkform, who have been experimenting with Masonite for about ten years, have had a close collaboration with the Rundvik manufacturer in northern Sweden for a long time. The Folkform duo got to know each other at the Stockholm University College of Arts, Crafts and Design, where they created their renowned furniture with flowers pressed into Masonite.

The Folkform exhibition can be seen in the store at Strandvägen 5 in Stockholm until June 10.