fritzhansen.comImage source: Jakob Berg
© The respective rights holders. Quoted to accompany INTEBEE's independent design commentary and research.
Designer
Jakob Berg
Jakob Berg (1958–2008) was a Danish industrial designer. Fritz Hansen gives 1987 as the year he graduated (Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts); he then worked for Danish and international companies and received several distinctions. A…
Biography
Background
Jakob Berg (1958–2008) was a Danish industrial designer. Fritz Hansen gives 1987 as the year he graduated (Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts); he then worked for Danish and international companies and received several distinctions. A review in the journal of the Decorative Arts Society places him in a generation of Danish furniture designers between the mid-century Golden Age and the New Nordic period of the 21st century.
Signature Style
Fritz Hansen writes that he was inspired by shapes that caught his eye and believed ergonomic shapes and material choices should reflect his social reflection and all-embracing attitude to life. The Decorative Arts Society review describes early lounge seating with bold textiles, and later a move away from plush upholstery toward environmental and social concerns about materials and manufacturing.
Notable Works
- ALIVE, ALIVE-OH, the studio he formed with the textile designer Dorte Østergaard Jakobsen
- A moulded, stackable bamboo chair developed in Bali, described as the first of its kind
- Wooden outdoor furniture, including the Ballare Chair and Ballare Table listed on his Fritz Hansen page
Legacy
He died in 2008, weeks after his 50th birthday. The book Jakob Berg: Furniture (Arnoldsche, 2021), edited by Østergaard Jakobsen and Pernille Anker Kristensen, documents his work.
