Torbjørn Afdal
挪威 1917～1999
Torbjørn Afdal (1917～1999) 是战后时期最多产的和受人尊敬的挪威设计师之一。1917年生于挪威 Voss 地区, Afdal 就读于国家工艺美术学院 National Academy of Craft and Art Industry，并在1946年毕业。他被 Bruksbo Tegnekontor (Bruksbo 绘画工作室) 聘为设计师，并最终成为该公司的顶级设计师。
1960年的 Afdal Krobo 长椅在挪威瞬间大获成功，或许是因为它十分极简的美学赋予了它独特的柔韧性。这个长凳可以成为你想要的任何东西。Afdal 还设计了酒柜和干酒吧，包括 Bacchus (1955)，以及更为著名的 Times (1960年)，这是一个带有精细黄铜细节的紫檀酒柜。Afgdal 的其他作品包括 Hunter Lounge Chair 猎人躺椅 (1962年) 和 Minerva 办公椅 (1965年)。许多资料表明 Afdal 的 Form 餐具系列(1959) 在慕尼黑的 So Wohnt Europa 家具博览会上获得了金牌。虽然许多古董经销商名分开列 Bruksbo 或 Mellemstrandqs Møbelfabrik 为 Afdal 的制造商, 但出现在一起标签应该被视为同一个公司。美国第一夫人Jackie Kennedy、日本Hirohito 裕仁天皇和挪威首相格 Gro Harlem Brundtland 都曾收藏过 Afdal 的设计。
They created models for dozens of furniture manufacturers, and in the mid-1960s a large percentage of Norwegian furniture exports were designed by Bruksbo. Afdal got recognised internationally as a highly skilled designer, he was awarded with a gold medal for the lounge chair Broadway at the Deutsche Handwerksmesse in Munich 1959. Among those who purchased Afdal’s design were First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy and the Japanese Emperor, and he later designed the office of Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland.
His work is characterized primarily by a refined understanding of material and form. Afdal had a combination of art and tradition in his work, with a talent of utilizing the natural possibilities of wood. Around 1955-65, Afdal’s furniture design gained a more crafted feel, the armchair Broadway together with the hunting chair Hunter was his artistic highlights. Many of his products are true classics and deserves to be revived.