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Wegner, Jacobsen, Kjærholm, as well as Eames, and of course
Kajsa and Nisse Strinning’s String System.
In 1985, the Swedish auction house Bukowskis, made the bold
move of holding a Nisse Strinning exhibition. Some wondered
how such a well-known, everyday product could be classified
as a design classic. But Bukowskis’ intuition proved right.
It soon became clear that String had reached iconic status
among design collectors and the designer couple were now seen
in a new light.
OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS
Fast forward to November 2004, when Ulrika and Peter Erlandsson
opened a small design shop in southern Sweden. A customer
came in asking if anyone knew of the “String shelf”, and if so,
how she could get hold of one. Although the owners had no idea
of the answer, they found the question intriguing. Peter did some
research and was surprised to learn that production of String
had stopped and the manufacturer had been declared bankrupt.
On a whim, Peter contacted the bankruptcy administrator to
find out if and when manufacturing could start again. He found
himself asking if it was possible to take over the rights to String
production. The administrator referred him to Nisse Strinning.
Before going any further, Peter called his partner Pär Josefsson,
and the two of them agreed to pursue the opportunity together.
A couple of weeks later, Peter and Pär visited the Strinning's
home. Peter remembers that the house was visible from a distance,
with its garden full of artworks. Nisse lived upstairs with his
sketches and prototypes while Kajsa lived on the ground floor
with her drawings. But that day, the couple was waiting together
in the kitchen with a huge freshly baked cake which spelt out
the word S-T-R-I-N-G.
‘THE BOYS’ TAKE OVER
In 2004, Peter and Pär – whom Kajsa and Nisse endearingly
referred to as ‘the boys' – bought the rights to manufacture,
distribute and sell String worldwide. All four shook hands
on the deal and a brand new chapter of String Furniture began.
The following year the new range in a contemporary all white
version, was presented at H05 in Helsingborg – the very same
place where the original design had received so much attention
fifty years earlier. The familiar shape of the String system felt at
once both classic and modern.
THE LEGACY LIVES ON
Today, String comprises of an entire system and can be combined
in an infinite number of configurations. New colours, materials,
1949 on the left, 2024 on the right. The original dimensions have stayed exactly the same since the very start.
