Swedish furniture designer Axel Einar Hjorth created tables, chairs, cabinets and other pieces that were as elegant as they were functional, and he frequently worked in references to a litany of inspirations including French Art Deco, Gustavian style and modernism. Ahead of his time, his style was refined and daringly simple.
Born in Krokek, Sweden, Hjorth grew up in a foster family and at 20 moved to Stockholm where he studied architecture and design at the Högre Konstindustriella Skolan (now the University of Arts, Crafts & Design). Although he dropped out when his foster father died, he went on to work for some of the largest furniture manufacturers in Sweden during the 1920s.
Hjorth’s work was featured in the 1923 Gothenburg Exhibition world’s fair, and he exhibited a birch and cherry cabinet in the 1927 “Swedish Contemporary Decorative Arts” exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. His role as the head of the furniture department at Nordiska Kompaniet (NK), an upscale department store in Stockholm, from 1927 to 1938, further brought his designs to widespread acclaim, including pieces exhibited at the 1929 Barcelona International Exposition.
At the 1930 Stockholm Exhibition, an influential event in the emergence of functionalism in Swedish design, Hjorth exhibited a dozen room settings that featured examples of sportstugemöbler. These furniture lines were named for islands in Sweden’s archipelago — Utö, Blidö and Torö — with designs intended for cabins and vacation homes. The use of solid Swedish pine in these pieces revealed a love of traditional rustic furniture while the simple forms boldly looked to the future. He also brought his eclectic influences to armchairs formed from tubular metal, blocky case pieces made from birch and upholstered sofas with neoclassical details, each exuberantly mixing form and function.
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Axel Einar Hjorth Swedish Grace "Roma" Cabinet in Birch, 1920's
By Axel Einar Hjorth
Located in Uccle, BE
Stained flamed birch cabinet "Roma" for Svenska Möbelfabriken Bodafors, SMF. Designed by Axel Einar Hjorth. Interior has 3 wide shelves, 2 smaller side s...
Birch
Axel Einar Hjorth Swedish Grace Bookshelf, 1930
By Axel Einar Hjorth, NK (Nordiska Kompaniet)
Located in Uccle, BE
"Funkis" Bookshelf made of Bonad birch with removable shelves. Metal plaque on back with the following information NK R 35389- C 25 1 32. Dimensions: H100.5 x W116 x D25cm H39" x W46...
Birch
Swedish Art Deco Axel Einar Hjorth "Roma" Desk
By Axel Einar Hjorth
Located in Uccle, BE
Produced by Bodafors in Sweden. Stained flamed birch desk "Roma" for Svenska Möbelfabriken Bodafors, SMF. Designed by Axel Einar Hjorth. Axel Einar Hjorth (1888-1959) was an importa...
Birch
Swedish Modern Birch desk, 1930's
By Axel Larsson
Located in Uccle, BE
Axel Larsson was a prominent Swedish furniture architect with a career that spanned more than 50 years. At the age of 25, he was employed by Svenska Möbelfabrikerna in Bodafors at th...
Birch
Axel Einar Hjorth Roma set extendable table and chairs, 1920's
By Axel Einar Hjorth
Located in Uccle, BE
Table extends from 148-260cm/58-102 inches Chairs measure H91 x W42 x D42 x Seat H45cm/ H36 x W16.5 x D16.5 x Seat H18 inches. Axel Einar Hjorth was a pioneering Swedish designer wh...
Birch
1930s Swedish Baroque Revival Tiled Table, Axel Einar Hjorth, Nordiska Kompaniet
By Axel Einar Hjorth, Nordiska Kompaniet
Located in Uccle, BE
Rare Art Deco piece, coffee table with beautiful spiral legs made of red beech and black tiles with gold motif. Dimensions for this table with turned legs of red beech is H 56 x W5...
Beech
An Axel Einar Hjorth Swedish Grace "Roma" Cabinet in Birch, 1920's
By Axel Einar Hjorth
Located in London, GB
A Swedish Grace stained flamed birch cabinet "Roma" for Svenska Möbelfabriken Bodafors, SMF. Designed by Axel Einar Hjorth. The cabinet opens by three doors to reveal and interior w...
Birch
Cabinet by Axel Einar Hjorth
By Axel Einar Hjorth
Located in Long Island City, NY
Very rare if not unique cabinet designed by Axel Einar Hjorth, from the "Caesar" series. Circa 1932. Stained birch. Rich decorated hand carved flamed birch doors panels. Original har...
Birch
1920s Swedish Cabinet by Axel Einar Hjorth for Svenska Möbelfabrikerna, Bodafors
By Axel Einar Hjorth, SMF Svenska Möbelfabriken Bodafors
Located in Örebro, SE
This is the 1920s Swedish Grace cabinet designed by Axel Einar Hjorth for AB Svenska Möbelfabrikerna in Bodafors, Sweden. It comes builded in two sections. Made of birch and veneered with dark brown stained birch. The inside and the shelves are veneered with natural birch. Behind the doors hides two removable shelves in each section. The front is richly ornamented and the two front legs resemble paws. In an age of 100 years it still has a beautiful strong, vibrant colors without any fading. Marked "AB Svenska Möbelfabrikerna Bodafors" with a metal plate inside the upper right door. The locks work and one key is included. ____________________ Axel Einar Hjorth worked in his younger years at Svenska Möbelfabrikerna in Bodafors, before he in 1927 got employed as chief designer at Nordiska Kompaniet. Thus, the cabinet was designed before 1927 and it’s fair to assume the cabinet was manufactured sometime in the 1920s. Axel Einar Hjorth is beside his design of these type of Swedish Grace furniture known for the design of Nordiska Kompaniets Sport Cabin...
Birch
1920's Swedish Decorative Cabinet
By Axel Einar Hjorth
Located in Turners Falls, MA
1920's Swedish Cabinet. Stained flamed birch cabinet, in the style of Axel Einar Hjorth. 2 large doors conceal 3 interior adjustable shelves. 2 drawers below doors. This cabinet is ...
Birch
Cabinet 'Borgholm' produced by SMF-Bodafors, Sweden, 1920s
By SMF Svenska Möbelfabriken Bodafors, Axel Einar Hjorth
Located in Eskilstuna, SE
Elegant cabinet model 'Borgholm' produced by SMF-Bodafors in Sweden during the first half of the 20th century. Made in stained birch. Adjustable shelves. Manufacturer's metal pla...
Birch
Flamed Birch "Roma" Cabinet by Axel Einar Hjorth, ca. 1925
By Axel Einar Hjorth
Located in New York, NY
Beautiful darkened flamed birch "Roma" cabinet made for Bodafors, Sweden, circa 1925. Three-doors with birch interior. Excellent condition. Axel Einar Hjorth (Swedish 1888 -1959) “...
Birch
