Eero Aarnio

Eero Aarnio (1932-) is one of the leading names in Finnish design history. Apostle of the Space Age style, Aarnio was one of the first designers to experiment in the 60s with an extensive use of plastic in the world of furniture. His creations, starting from the iconic Ball Chair that he designed in 1963 for the Asko brand and which recalls the shape of a space capsule, are pervaded by the optimistic spirit typical of that era and are based on futuristic organic shapes. Aarnio's style, in many ways in strong break with the consolidated tradition of Scandinavian design of his masters Antti Nurmesniemi and Ilmari Tapiovaara, however knew how to stay away from the easy consumerist and pop temptations often connected to the use of plastic: his furnishings were built to last for a long time, focusing on a high quality production invoice, and perhaps for this reason they have remained so impressed in the collective memory. His iconic Ball Chair, together with other notable works such as the playful Pastilli stool or the suspended Bubble Chair armchair, are now re-proposed by the Eero Aarnio Originals brand together with much of his production from the 1960s, the decade in which he contributed decisively to shape the aesthetics. In more recent years he has experienced a period of renewed success with some important collaborations, first of all the one with the Magis brand for which he has created in particular various furnishings for children part of the Me Too collection (one of which was also awarded the Compasso d'Oro in 2008). He has also worked with brands such as Artek, Vondom, Serralunga and Alessi.