by Evi Mibelli.
It is a name that is unknown to most people and is not particularly well known even among “insiders”. Unless they’re collectors of Scandinavian design, and they enjoy participating in auctions, where his formidable furnishings fetch prohibitive prices. Carl Axel Acking was one of the most prolific Swedish designers, sharing the Olympus of the greats with his contemporaries, Bruno Mathsson, Erik Gunnar Asplund, and Carl Malmsten.
On the left, rare examples of bent mahogany armchairs, designed by Car Axel Acking, for Bodafors, 1950; on the right, oak sideboard designed for Bodafors, 1950.
He was born on March 8, 1910 in Helsingborg and from an early age he showed a particular aptitude for art and drawing. Supported by an open-minded and lively family, he attended Gymnasium and then entered the National College of Art (from 1931 to 1934) in Stockholm, and subsequently the prestigious Royal Institute of Technology where he graduated in architecture in 1939.
Interior of the office of Malmstroms Metallvarufabriks, Malmö, 1950. Foto Sundahl Sune.
A well-rounded education that ensures Carl Axel Acking can range – as he has done – from architecture to furniture design and interior design in an absolutely original conceptual and stylistic continuity. He could be defined as the Scandinavian version of Giò Ponti. It’s a real shame to have forgotten him, especially considering how crucial his contribution to Swedish modernist architecture and design was to his international recognition.
Trienna armchair, in walnut and leather, designed for NK Nordiska Kompaniet. Exhibited at the Milan Triennale in 1957.
Due to his undisputed qualities as a designer, he was chosen, while still a student, as a collaborator by Erik Gunnar Asplund (1885-1940) to follow and assist him in the project for the extension of the Gothenburg City Hall and its courthouse. It should be remembered that Asplund was a professor at the Royal Institute of Technology at the time and, therefore, in close contact with students, including the young Acking, whose innate talent did not escape him.
Teak highboard by Carl Axel Acking for NK Nordiska Kompaniet, 1950.
That monumental work by Asplund was an extraordinary training ground for Carl Axel Acking, who saw one of the masters of Nordic functionalism at work. At the end of the works, in 1936, the Town Hall presented itself with two distinct parts: the old building, an expression of classicism, and the new rationalist structure.
Despite the stylistic difference, Asplund was skilled in harmonizing the ancient with the modern and did not limit himself to the structural part alone, but took care of the interiors by designing fabrics, furniture and lights. This continuity between architecture and interiors will be the common thread that will mark Carl Axel Acking’s entire career. A legacy, that of Asplund, masterfully interpreted by his young colleague.
Egen Villa, Stockholm. Living room interior, 1962. Photo Böklin Lena Margareta.
Exterior Egen Villa, Djursholm, Stockholm, 1962. Photo Böklin Lena Margareta.
In 1939 he opened the Stockholm studio with Sven Hesselgren (1907-1993). The 1940s and 1950s were an explosive creative period for Acking. He is involved in major architectural projects, including both public and residential buildings. The Siris Church in Torsby dates back to 1950, the spectacular pavilions built for the international furniture exhibition in Helsingborg date back to 1955, the Hässelby Family Hotel in Stockholm and the Quality Hotel in Östersund date back to 1955 and 56.
The residential projects (small buildings immersed in the greenery of Malmö and Stockholm) are also beautiful, including the Egen Villa built on the outskirts of the Swedish capital. The spatial concept combines a practical vision with an intimate and welcoming aesthetic, focusing on functionality that blends modernity and tradition in a comfortable manner.
Left, interior cabin, North Star Line cruise ship. 1962. Photo Sundahl Sune; on the right, cabin interior, North Star Line. Living area, 1962. Foto Sundahl Sune.
And in terms of interior design, his projects for the North Star Line, the cruise ship company for which he designed the interior spaces, are also significant. Almost seventy years have passed and yet they seem to have been drawn today.
International Furniture Exhibition H55, Helsingborg, 1955. Photo Sundahl Sune.
International Exhibition H55, Helsingborg 1955.
In furniture design, his attention was mainly focused on seating and storage units, all characterised by the masterful use of natural materials and the exaltation of their intrinsic beauty. Rigorous lines are privileged, without however falling into a sterile geometric exercise.
Indeed, he obsessively lingers on the details that become the counterpoints to define the aesthetic richness of the object. His in-depth knowledge of materials also allows him to create chiaroscuro textures that enliven the surfaces of highboards and sideboards, together with tables, wardrobes and fitted walls.
Teak sideboard on painted wooden legs. Brass handles. Mid 50s.
Dining table designed for Bodafors, ca. 1940.
He designed pieces that made the history of Scandinavian design, such as the Trienna armchair in leather and mahogany, presented at the Milan Triennale in 1957 for Nordiska Kompaniet, and the Tokyo Chair of 1959, also for Nordiska Kompaniet, designed for the Swedish Embassy in Tokyo, for which he oversaw the entire interior design.
Tokyo Chairs, seats designed for NK Nordiska Kompaniet, for the Swedish Embassy in Tokyo, 1959.
Oak sideboard with brass details, designed for Bodafors in the 1950s.
For his design work he was awarded the prestigious Lunning Prize in 1952, the highest recognition for Nordic design awarded to designers under 36.
Rare pendant lamp, with brass details. Design Carl Axel Acking for Bröderna Malmströms Metallvarufabrik in Sweden.
Exhibited at the National Museum in Stockholm, the Nordic Museum in Stockholm and the Harvard Design Museum in the USA, his pieces can be seen, if you are lucky, only at luxury modern art auctions. No exhibitions, much less re-editions of his wonderful furniture, have been promoted recently.
Left, floor lamp, design Carl-Axel Acking, for Broderna Malmstroms Metallvarufabrik, 1939. Produced in 1960; on the right, period interior with perforated brass pendant lamp. For Broderna Malmstroms Metallvarufabrik, 1939.
An unforgivable oversight towards those who have given us so much magical and simple beauty. Carl Axel Acking died on June 12, 2001 in Lund, Sweden.
On the left, Hotell Östensund, 1959. Room indoor. Photo Sundahl Sune; on the right, Hotell Östersund, 1959. Breakfast room. Photo Sundahl Sune.
On the cover, Carl Axel Acking. Historical archive photo.
