ONELIFE #33 – English

A NEW COPENHAGEN

A NEW COPENHAGEN Contemporary Danish design continues to be informed by simplicity, quality materials and a formidable tradition THE DESIGN ICON CECILIE MANZ Cecilie Manz (44) is one of the brightest stars on the international design scene and the recipient of countless design awards. Her works include iconic pieces for brands like B&O PLAY, Muuto, Fritz Hansen and Georg Jensen Damask. Manz graduated from The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in 1997 and founded her own studio in 1998. She lives in Copenhagen with her husband and two children. FAVOURITE PLACE “I have a very special relationship to the King’s Garden. I used to take the train into town to visit my grandmother when I was young, and I’d spend hours in the garden. It’s a truly magical place, right in the middle of the busy city centre.” BEST TIP “Right next to the King’s Garden, you’ll find the David Collection, which is a beautiful, small museum. It’s been completely restored recently and has a diverse collection of classical Middle-Eastern and European art. It’s easy to do and it’ll leave an impression.” ceciliemanz.com 72

A NEW COPENHAGEN THE FURNITURE DESIGNER HEE WELLING Hee Welling (44) is an award-winning furniture designer whose works have been exhibited at museums all over the world. His creations can be found at various global furniture outlets and in a number of corporate headquarters, including the Australian parliament and Amazon head offices. He attended the University of Art and Design in Helsinki and holds a master’s degree in furniture design from The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. He founded his own studio in 2003 and lives with his wife and three children in Bagsværd, a Copenhagen suburb. FAVOURITE PLACE “The Fælledparken park is one of my all-time favourite spots in the city. I lived right next to it for ten years, so I’ve spent countless hours there. It’s fantastic for running, barbequing or playing with the kids. It’s a real breathing space in the city.” BEST TIP “Getting to know the city canals means getting to know the city. You can go by boat or just walk around, but take your time and follow the system around at random and you’ll have a great time. Nothing says ’Copenhagen’ like the canals.” heewelling.com feeling that something is buzzing, simmering, happening,” says Hee Welling, an award-winning furniture designer who has exhibited his creations all across the globe. Welling has his studio in the city’s old north-western district, an area that used to host mainly auto mechanics and rusty production facilities. Now, he shares the premises with a number of architects, designers and a robotics engineer. His works are “ WE HAVE A distinctively Danish, informed by classic Danish design language HERITAGE THAT and icons like Børge Mogensen IS BOTH A GIFT and Arne Jacobsen. But unlike the design godfathers, Welling works AND A BURDEN” with 3D printing and rapid CECILIE MANZ modelling. With outlets like Muuto, Normann Copenhagen and HAY making big business with catalogues filled with fine Danish furniture design, the scene is set for a comeback for Danish furniture worldwide – and Welling and his peers are right in the thick of the re-revolution. That Copenhagen has become the epicentre of this movement is no coincidence, he says. “We have the tradition from the ’50s and ’60s which really put Danish design on a global pedestal as an example to follow; the clean, understated and aesthetically pleasing stuff we all know and love. Lately, there’s been a return to values like quality and timeless style. This has always been a stable of Danish design language – an emphasis on quality over quantity, and letting the products speak for themselves through simple but solid design. So it’s quite natural that the industry is booming here again.” “We have a heritage that is both a gift and a burden,” says Cecilie Manz, who is one of the hottest properties on the international design scene in recent years. Her work includes a host of award-winning pieces, including best-selling designs for B&O PLAY, a sub-brand to the iconic Danish luxury brand, Bang & Olufsen. “It’s something very unique and we’re lucky to have it. But we also face the challenge of continuing that tradition and doing it really well. We need to deliver and always in a way that respects our design tradition. This is one of the things I work the hardest on; making sure we do our best to live up to that tradition.” Danish design language, she says, is typically inspired by the Danes’ relationship to nature, 73