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THE DESIGN CHASER

Artek Celebrates 90th Anniversary by Reintroducing Gems from the Archive

10.01.2025

As part of Artek’s 90th anniversary in 2025, the iconic brand is reintroducing a selection of designs to honour its co-founders Aino and Alvar Aalto. These beloved pieces from the archive — both festive form and function — have been out of production for decades and are now returning to the Artek collection as limited anniversary editions or standard products.


Gems from the Archive includes Screen 100 in a wider range of heights to accommodate modern living, the return of Cabinet 250 to Artek’s standard collection, and two special limited editions of Stool X602 featuring the “X-leg”— one of Alvar Aalto’s most significant later innovations.


Screen 100 is the most architectural of Alvar Aalto’s designs — a room divider with a soft, undulating form inspired by the organic wave motif seen in many Aalto buildings. Now available in four heights — 100, 130, 150, and 180 cm — Screen 100 meets the needs of contemporary interiors, bringing both structure and sculptural elegance to a variety of spaces.


Beyond dividing rooms, Screen 100 can shield or conceal areas, create an inviting backdrop for seating, serve as an informal coat stand, or even provide an elegant, easy-to-install background for video calls — reflecting the evolving needs of the home.


Light and well-proportioned, the screen can be rolled up for storage and shaped to suit the space. It is crafted from Finnish pinewood, rather than the birchwood typically associated with Aalto furniture. Pine is a soft wood that grows throughout Finland, with a bold character that deepens into a rich patina as it ages gracefully.




Often referred to as the “cocktail cabinet,” Cabinet 250 rejoins the standard Artek collection following the success of a limited edition from the Artek + Moomin collection earlier in 2025. Simple in form and celebratory in function, its understated beauty makes it a stand-alone centrepiece for living and dining spaces, perfect for housing special tableware and refreshments.



While Cabinet 250 is credited to Alvar Aalto because of its L-leg, archival documents reveal that Aino Aalto first attached a cabinet body to this design. Its compact size and well-proportioned interior make it a practical storage unit for everyday items such as bed linen and clothing, reflecting Aino’s belief that no object or function is undeserving of aesthetic beauty.


Two special limited editions of Stool X602 celebrate ninety years of Artek, highlighting one of Alvar Aalto’s most refined innovations: the fan-shaped “X-leg.” First presented at the 1954 Konstruktiv Form exhibition at Stockholm’s Nordiska Kompaniet, the X-leg is a sculptural evolution of Aalto’s iconic L-leg. The hexagonal seat features a “curly birch” veneer applied with marquetry—a rare Finnish silver birch with wavy, irregular rings that create a fiery, richly textured pattern.



The stool is offered in two models: one fully honey-stained, the other with a honey-stained seat and natural lacquered legs, emphasizing the X-leg’s sculptural form. Each model is limited to ninety individually numbered pieces, making them unique collector’s items.


All pieces are crafted in Finland and will be available from 15 October 2025.

Photography by Joachim Wichmann, © Artek

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Studio Joanna Laajisto | A New Finnish Home for a Global Design Consultancy

10.24.2017

When Fjord, one of the world’s leading design and innovation consultancies, grew out of its Helsinki premises, it needed a new space that would reflect the Fjord brand and feel like home to its employees from around the world. Having worked with the Helsinki-based Studio Joanna Laajisto before, Fjord knew that they had found a designer who could translate Fjord brand characteristics into interior design principles.


“Elegant, unconventional and human – those were the starting points of our design process" says Joanna Laajisto who designed Fjord’s minimal and warm studio in central Helsinki. "This is an office primarily made for employees to feel at home, and the wow factor for outsiders comes from what the space feels like, not merely from its looks.” 

Furnished with high quality, natural materials such as oak flooring with sound-absorbing underlay and sisal carpet, the studio is bathed in natural light. One of my favourite features is the delicate metal room dividers. Designed to allow for the light to flow through the spaces, the addition of linen curtains ensures privacy when needed. Rather than building a traditional office, the aim was to create an approachable, homelike workspace and this can certainly be seen throughout. In addition to different kitchen and lounge spaces suitable for collaboration, the offices include creative work and casual hang-outs. Privacy can be found in comfortable phone booths lined with Kvadrat’s acoustic Soft Cell panels.


Most of the materials and pieces of furniture are of Finnish origin, in line with the wishes of Fjord Helsinki. Meeting rooms are furnished with Artek Rival chairs, the living rooms’ large carpets are from Woodnotes, and the Knoll’s Womb chairs were designed by Finnish designer Eero Saarinen. The living rooms are also fitted with striking PJ01 lamps, designed by Joanna Laajisto and designer Pasi Kärkkäinen. The gorgeous green kitchens blend in with the natural materials and are furnished with Ilmari Tapiovaara’s Domus chairs as well as oak tables and benches from Nikari.

“Our people are very proud of our new office space and they are constantly inviting people to come and see it,” says Stéphanie Del Rey from Fjord Helsinki.  “When planning the space and its furniture, we wanted it to be very adaptive. Now we can use our space in various versatile ways: people even use it in their spare time for movie nights and casual hang-outs!”


Such a welcoming place for both work and downtime, I can see why employees can't stay away! 

Images courtesy of Studio Joanna Laajisto

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Homes to Inspire | Simple Elegance

12.09.2012

Following on from Friday's post, here is the home of interior architect Joanna Laajisto, as promised. Located in Töölö, Helsinki, Joanna and her husband Mikko Ryhänen have carried out a full renovation. Mikko is a photographer and took these lovely shots. 


As with all of Joanna's work, the house is exquisite. White washed interiors and pared back styling make for a simple, yet beautifully elegant home. Her choice of lighting which includes an interesting mix of pendant lights and floor lamps is superb. I'm especially fond of the Louis Poulsen lamp above.




Dark wood details provide a stunning contrast against the white. 


Even though the home is pristine and uncluttered, I love that it still has a homely, lived in feel. I never tire of the classic Eames coat hook!    


Oh, how I adore this rug. The colours are amazing! 





More gorgeous Bertoia chairs in the kitchen, and little terracotta pots which feature a lot in Joanna's work. The home has some lovely vintage touches, like the storage crates under the shelves. 


Doesn't the all white bedroom look peaceful? I really like the sleek wardrobes and organised storage. 


Eye-catching subway tiles and a mirrored cabinet add texture to the bright bathroom.

According to news on Joanna's site, they have since purchased and renovated another apartment, in the same building as their current home! Although the walls are again a bright white, Joanna has chosen a light grey colour for the floors, and it looks incredible. For a sneak peek, take a look here

All images via http://emmas.blogg.se

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Joanna Laajisto

12.07.2012

I discovered Helsinki based interior architect Joanna Laajisto via Emmas Designblogg. I'm actually itching to show you her home, which is amazing, but that will have to wait until Sunday when I write my 'Homes to Inspire' post! 

Having studied in the US, Joanna designed large scale commercial projects at an international architect firm in LA, before returning to Finland. Driven by both functionality and aesthetics, I love her design philosophy "not to clutter this world with unnecessary things but to find the hidden beauty of each space and to enhance it by creative solutions." Also an expert in environmental design, Joanna likes to team up with like minded creatives including artists, designers and photographers, and has an amazing portfolio to show for it. Here are some highlights.  

Bar & Co Restaurant, Helsinki.

Private Residence, Helsinki



Euro RSCG, Advertising Agency, Helsinki





Tiger Sushi Restaurant, Espoo

I get so much enjoyment looking through Joanna's portfolio. She clearly has an amazing vision when carrying out these projects and there are so many gorgeous pendant lights and sconces! A mix of Japanese and Scandinavian design, the Tiger Sushi Restaurant is one of my favourites. I love the combination of plywood and black details, especially the ceramics.



All images via http://joannalaajisto.com

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