introduction

The Finnish designer Eero Aarnio (b.1932) is one of the great innovators of modern furniture design. In the 1960s, Eero Aarnio began experimenting with plastics, vivid colors and organic forms, breaking away from traditional design conventions. His now iconic plastic creations include the Ball (1963), the Pastil (1968), and the Bubble (1968) chairs which echo the pop culture and spirit of their time. Many of Aarnio's works are included in the world's most prestigious museums, including Victoria and Albert Museum in London, MoMA in New York and Vitra Design Museum in Weil am Rhein.

Eero Aarnio Born in 1932 in Helsinki, Finland
School of Applied Arts, Helsinki 1954-57
Married Pirkko Attila 1956
Children Marja-Leena 1959 and Rea 1961
Designer, Asko Oy 1960-62 in Lahti, Finland
Own design office 1962 Helsinki, Finland
Eero Aarnio Design Studio GmbH 1978-82 in Cologne, Germany
Design Studio in Tapiola, Finland 1982
Eero Aarnio T:mi, Veikkola, Finland 1992 Aarnio Design Ltd., Veikkola, Finland 2001 Awards Valmet Trade Mark Competition, Helsinki, Finland 1958, First Prize International Furniture Competition, Cantu, Italy 1959, Third Prize Export Furniture Competition, Helsinki, Finland 1963, Third Prize International Competition on Furniture Design, Cantu, Italy 1964, First Prize Scandinavian Park and Street Competition 1965, Stockholm, Sweden, First Prize Steel Furniture Competition, Helsinki, Finland 1967, Second Prize International Design Award of the A.I.D. (American Institute of Interior Designers) for Pastil Chair (Gyro) 1968, New York, USA Honorary member of SIO (Finnish Association of Interior Designers) 1999 The Finland Prize 2005, The Ministry of Education, Finland Interior Innovation Award Cologne 2006, Germany On November 30, 2007 Eero Aarnio was awarded an honorary title of professor by the President of Finland. The Compasso d’Oro Design award for Trioli chair, Italy 2008 Kaj Frank Design Prize in Finland, 2008 Solo Exhibitions That´s it, Art Gallery Árvore, Porto, Portugal 2001 Eero Aarnio, Kunsthalle, Helsinki, Finland 2003 Eero Aarnio – popfantasier og sittende dagdrømmer, Kunstindustrimuseet, Oslo, Norway 2004 Forestil dig en rund stol, Danish Design Center, Kopenhagen, Denmark 2005 Pop Fantasies: Furniture Design by Eero Aarnio, The Embassy of Finland, Washington DC, USA 2005 Fantasías del Pop. El diseño de Eero Aarnio, Museo Franz Mayer, Mexico City 2007 "Retropop, Phantasie und Tagträume" at the Finnish Embassy in Berlin from November 8, 2007-January 4, 2008 Kaj Frank Design Prize Exhibition in Design Forum Finland from December 11, 2008 till January 11, 2009 Kaj Frank Design Prize Exhibition at the exhibition center of the visual arts TR1 in Tampere from April 4 through May 5, 2009 Exhibitions Rattan Stools, Asko Oy, Helsinki 1961 7+7 Arkitekter, Stockholm, Sweden 1964 Triennale XIV, Milan, Italy 1964 Eurodomus, Genova, Italy 1966 and Milan, Italy 1970 Fiberglass Furniture, Asko Oy, Helsinki 1968 Plastic as Plastic, New York, USA 1970 Design aus Finnland, Asko GmbH, Cologne, Germany 1979 Masters of Modern Design, IBM Gallery, New York, USA 1991 Plastic Fantastic, Trapholt Museum of Modern Art, Denmark 2005 Represented in Museums Museum of Modern Art, MoMA, New York, USA Victoria and Albert Museum, London, Great Britain Design Museum, Helsinki, Finland Vitra Design Museum, Weil am Rhein, Germany Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France Musée des arts décoratifs de Montreal, Canada Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands Die Neue Sammlung, München, Germany Galerie für Avantgarde Kunst, Cologne, Germany Galerie für Zeitgenössische Kunst, Leipzig, Germany Kunsthal Rotterdam, Netherlands Kunstmuseum Düsseldorf im Ehrenhof, Germany Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe, Hamburg, Germany Brooklyn Museum, New York, USA Liliane and David M. Stewart Collection, Le Musée du Chateau Dufresne, Montreal, Canada Los Angeles County Museum of Art, USA Toledo Museum of Art, USA Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, USA Baltimore Museum of Art, USA Bauhaus Museum, Sydney, Australia Books of Eero Aarnio That´s it. Vestígio, Consultores de Design, Portugal 2001 Eero Aarnio. Fang Hai. China Architecture & Building Press 2002 Assume a round chair–Eero Aarnio and the 60´s. Kunsthalle Helsinki, University of Art and Design, Helsinki 2003 Eero Aarnio. Fang Hai. Southeast University Press, China 2003 Eero Aarnio, Kaj Frank Design Prize. Design Forum Finland 2008.