since 1999

Eero Aarnio (born 1932) is a Finnish interior designer, well known for his innovative furniture designs in the 1960s, notably his plastic and fiberglass chairs. Aarnio studied at the Institute of Industrial Arts in Helsinki, and started his own office in 1962. The following year he introduced his Ball Chair, a hollow sphere on a stand, open on one side to allow a person to sit inside. Ball Chair is a ”room within a room” with a cozy and calm atmosphere, protecting outside noises and giving a private space for relaxing. The similar Bubble Chair was clear and suspended from above. As Ludwig Mies van der Rohe said: Less is more! A masterpiece of reduction. The Bubble Chair swallows the sounds and you feel isolated inside in a pleasant way, even when you are in a crowded place. Aarnio’s designs were an important aspect of 1960s popular culture, and could often be seen as part of sets in period science-fiction films. Because his designs used very simple geometric forms, they were ideal for such productions. Aarnio is still active in creating new designs and, while he has also worked with more traditional materials like wood and steel during his long career, still mainly draws products that follow his distinct style of playful shapes and colors only manufacturable in plastic.