Yrjö Kukkapuro
Yrjö Kukkapuro, a set of 1960s table and four chairs 'Junior' for Haimi.
Four chairs, seat of fiberglass, red leather upholstery, rotating central base. Width 70 cm. Seat height 44 cm. Total height 86.5 cm.
Table with laminate top and central base of plastic. Diameter 120 cm, height 56 cm.
Wear due to age and use. Partly hard wear. Marks. Stains.
Provenance
The chairs and table from Yrjö Kukkapuro's Junior series were purchased in 1969 for Ilkka ‘Danny’ Lipsanen's company, D-tuotanto Ky. D-tuotanto is one of Finland's oldest production companies in the entertainment industry.
Designer
Yrjö Kukkapuro is a Finnish interior architect and furniture designer with a prolific career spanning over 65 years. He gained fame primarily through his experimental design and ergonomic philosophy, focusing on ecological values and the inherent qualities of materials. Born in 1933 in Vyborg, Kukkapuro studied at the University of Art and Design Helsinki, later becoming a teacher there. Eventually, he served as the rector from 1978 to 1980.
Kukkapuro is perhaps best known for his chairs, with one of the most famous being the "Karuselli" from 1964. The chair was dubbed the "Most Comfortable Chair in the World" by The New York Times in 1974 and is part of the permanent collections at the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.