Estrid Ericson, the dynamic founder of the pewter workshop turned interiors brand Svenskt Tenn, lived a few floors above her shop on Stockholm’s famed Strandvägen, a majestic tree-lined waterfront esplanade. Her apartment was adorned with furniture her brand designed and sold, souvenirs from trips abroad, and objects she picked up at flea markets. It changed throughout the years, representing her belief that “our homes are never completed,” as she wrote in a 1939 essay. But a photo from 19TK, shows it during a particularly elegant, yet relaxed, moment: Ericson, wearing strands of pearls and a brocade dress, is lying under a fur blanket on a floral sofa while reading a book. Her dog is sprawled out at her feet and her cat sits on a zebra-print table just a few feet away. It’s a comforting, welcoming, and joyful space—the qualities that demonstrated her definition of Swedish modernism.
A remarkably faithful recreation of this living room is part of ‘Svenskt Tenn: A Philosophy of Home,’ an exhibition at Stockholm’s Liljevalchs museum that celebrates the company’s 100th anniversary this year. Organized by Karin Södergren, Svenskt Tenn’s head curator, and Jane Withers, an independent curator, the show unfolds in 13 thematic rooms featuring an extensive array of furniture, objects, and never-before-exhibited ephemera from the company’s vast archive. Many of the objects in the exhibition will be familiar to Svenskt Tenn fans—particularly the exuberant Josef Frank botanical textiles and glimmering pewter tableware—but what comes into focus in this retrospective is how enduring Ericson’s values are.
