Dansk Kunsthåndværk
Volume 30, No. 6, June 1957
Bent Salicath, Mogens Andersen [Editors]
Bent Salicath [Adm. Director]: Dansk Kunsthåndværk [Danish Crafts]. København: Landsforeningen Dansk Kunsthåndværk [National Association of Danish Crafts], June 1957. [Volume 30, No. 6]. Text in Danish. Slim quarto. Stapled letterpressed wrappers. 40 pp. Articles and advertisements. Wrappers lightly worn, but a nearly fine copy.
8.25 x 11.75 Danish Journal for Interior Decoration, Design, Crafts and Industry with 40 pages of text and advertisments published by the National Association of Danish Crafts, Copenhagen. The Executive Committee of the National Association of Danish Crafts in 1957 consisted of Poul Michelsen, Jacob Kjaer, Chr. Christiansen, Sigurd Christiansen, Rudolf Jørgensen, Nathalie Krebs, and A. Skjerbaek
- Bonjour Tristesse: Vemodige betragtninger over en køkkenudstilling by Bent Salicath
- En keramisk nyvinding: Axel Brüels nye stel for Porcelænsfabriken Danmark by Gunnar Jespersen
- Mennesket i sort og Hvidt: Fotografisk efterår, der bød på flere overraskelset by Pierre Lübecker [includes work by Jesper Høm, Georg Oddner, Jørn Freddie, Anker Spang-Larsen
- Portrætter fra "Den IX" by Aage Remfeldt: includes work by S. Y. Chen, Tran-Linh, and Edward Hartwig
- Den belgiske møbelindustri gør nye fremstød by Richard Wagner Hansen: includes work by J. de Mey for Van den Berghe-Pauvers
- Ny Gramtæpper: includes work by Arne Jacobsen, Ruth Hull, and Risse Berntsen
- To konkurrencer om mønstre: includes work by Harry Jensen, Hannah Karlby, and Trägårdh Sverige
- En beretning om Neue Form aus Dänemark by Helge Knudsen
- Koptiske tekstiler
- Notes and Reviews
Advertisers include Jacob E. Bang for Kastrup Glas, H. Engholm and Sv. Aa. Willumsen for Fritz Hansens EFTF., Hans Wegner for Ry Møbler, Hans Wegner for Andr. Tuck, Vilhelm Wohlert for Le Klint, Ole hagen for A. Michelsen, Hans Wegner for Carl Hansen & Søn, Mogens Koch for Rud. Rasmussen Snedkerier, Grete Jalk for France & Son, A. C. Nørgaard for Carl M. Cohr, Sigvard Bernadotte for Bing & Grøndahl, Magnus Stephensen for Georg Jensen, Erik Ole Jorgensen for L. F. Foght, Kurt Østervig for Møbelfabriken Jason, Peter Hvidt and O. Mølgaard Nielsen for Søborg Møbelfabrik, Grete Jalk for P. Jeppesens Møbelfabrik, Einer Larsen and A. Bender Madsen for Næstved Møbelfabrik, Børge Mogensen for Fredericia Stole- & Polstermøbelfabrik, Ejvind A. Johansson for FDB Møbler, and Raymond Loewy for Rosenthal among others.
In 1954 the four Scandinavian countries, Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland arranged what proved to be the most important marketing effort ever for Scandinavian design—the monumental exhibition Design in Scandinavia. From 1954 to 1957 Design in Scandinavia toured the United States and Canada. The exhibition was presented in 27 cities, and it was a huge success, initiated by The Danish Society of Arts and Crafts and its sister organizations in the other participating countries.
Based on the success the four countries established what they called the Scandinavian Design Cavalcade, which had a lot of US press coverage as well. In that connection the July 1959 issue of House Beautiful was centered around The Scandinavian Look in U.S. Homes, and it was Denmark and Danish Design in particular that the magazine focussed on. Besides the editorial pages, the numerous ads illustrates that Danish modern furniture was increasingly gaining a stronghold among certain groups of American consumers.
Importers and retail chains like John Stuart Inc., George Tanier, Raynor and Dunbar etc. now sold Danish modern furniture in the US, and by now it was not only hand crafted furniture from the Copenhagen Cabinetmakers’ Guild Exhibitions but also pieces from industrial furniture producers like Fritz Hansen, Søborg Møbelfabrik, Fredericia Furniture and many others. From the end of the 1950s Danish Department stores and other retailers produced comprehensive brochures and booklets in English with prices in US Dollars presenting Danish Design to American and other tourists.
Without exception, these stores all presented the narrative of Danish modern. “Denmark is known all over the world for its exquisite home furnishing, which are characterized by their outstanding design and superb craftsmanship” the department store Magasin claimed in its brochure “Danish Design.”
Dansk Kunsthåndværk [Danish Crafts] was the house organ for the National Association of Danish Crafts in Copenhagen published beginning in 1927. According to their website, the aim of The Danish Arts and Crafts Association is to work for the development of Danish arts and crafts; to care for members interest in all matter concerning trade, continued development and education; to propagate for knowledge of and use of artist and crafts-people and their works in all parts of the society; and to strengthen and coordinate the area of arts and crafts with special reference to create knowledge and recognition for arts and crafts as a cultural factor.