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However it brought back a lot of childhood memories of the homes of my grand parents; many of the designer classics on display there were and are still parts of Danish homes today. Hans Wegner chairs and Verner Panton lamps are still very popular today and a lot of Børge Mogensen’s furniture designs were not that expensive in the 50s and 60s. The legendary lamps created by Poul Henningsen and the B&O radios were part of both my grandparents’ and my childhood home. Seeing this standing exhibition was therefore fun and sort of historically educative, but it did not show me anything about what’s happing with Danish design these days and I missed that a bit.
Copenhagen in illustration
I have always been very fascinated by Danish old school poster design. The visiting exhibition shows posters and illustrations by Danish illustrator Ib Andersen . Although I at first thought I didn’t know him, he has created many of the well known posters for example for Tivoli:
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With the same brilliant perspective on street life and everyday scenery as Touslouse-Lautrec Ib Andersen also made illustrations for newspapers such as Politiken and Berlingske Tidende in the 1930s and onwards. These examples show how he both captures the city's loneliness and isolation, and can turn shapes and shadows into artistic master pieces.
But Ib Andersen's illustrations are also legendary in other less acknowledged ways – he is the guy behind the illustrations on the old Danish 20,50,100 and 1000 kroner bills. I know it seems silly to get all sentimental about illustrations on money, but for some reason I really think that they deserve greater artistic attention. These days when we're all using our credit cards more and more and a lot of cash becomes rare I think it would be cool if we could take time and look at the bills - they are small pieces of artwork.
1 kommentar:
Hej, hvor er det fint at læse om din opdagelse af Ib Andersen. Det er meget rigtigt det du skriver og du har fanget essensen af hans værk. Jeg har selv været fortabt i hans tegnekunst og jeg skrevet en artikel i bogen som udkom samtidig med udstillingen. Den har en anden vinkel, den handler nemlig om hvordan Ib Andsersen ødelagde min fremtid som tegner, fordi påvirkningen var alt for voldsom. Det var selvfølgelig ikke hans skyld, men min egen, fordi jeg var for umoden til at forstå hvordan man tackler inspiration og læring. Bedste hilsner, Simon Bang
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