SPOTLIGHT ON
MCM Furniture Designers & Makers
(A work in progress...)
Arne Hovmand-Olsen, Denmark
Arne Hovmand-Olsen had the world in mind, both before and after the 1950s, when he became one of Denmark’s renowned furniture designers.
Arne Hovmand-Olsen was born in Kirkeby Sogn, Denmark in 1919 to a farm family. Showing an early aptitude for drawing and design, in 1938 he was apprenticed to the cabinetmaker Peder Olsen Sibast at his furniture manufactory on Denmark’s island of Funen. Interested in producing his own designs, in 1941 Hovman-Olsen enrolled at a technical school in Århus, specialising in furniture design, and established his own workshop soon after finishing his studies.
Typical of Danish Modern furniture design, Hovmand-Olsen’s creations were characterised by clean lines, organic curves, and the use of quality materials, like beautiful grained wood such as teak and rosewood. Encompassing seating, tables, secretaries and sideboards, his designs quickly met with success, first in Denmark, and eventually across the Atlantic in the United States of America.
Hovmand-Olsen worked steadily designing furniture for companies such as Alf Juul Rasmussen, A. R. Klingenberg & Søn, Bramin, Elven Geertsen, J.L. Møller, Jutex, Mogens Kold Møbelfabrik, P. Mikklesen, Pedersen & Knap, and Skovmand & Andersen.
The studio closed in the 1970s due to Arne Hovmand-Olsen’s ill health. He passed away in 1989.
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https://afternoah.com/page/mid-century-design/danish-modern/arne-hovmand-olsen
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https://www.warmnordic.com/global/arne-hovmand-olsen/ahol.html
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