Designer: Bruno Mathsson

August 21, 2025

Bruno Mathsson (1907–1988) was one of the most original voices in Scandinavian design. What set him apart was not only his eye for elegant modernist form but also his deep roots as a carpenter. His furniture is represented at both the Victoria & Albert Museum in London and the Museum of Modern Art in New York – and in Sweden his name is synonymous with modern design.

Mathsson was born in Värnamo, Sweden, into the family company Firma Karl Mathsson, founded by his father. As the fifth generation of carpenters, he grew up surrounded by tools, materials, and craft traditions. This foundation in practical woodworking shaped his entire career.

His first decisive breakthrough came between 1933 and 1936, when he created the so-called three basic chairs (arbetsstol, vilstol, liggstol mod. 36 – Working chair, Lounge chair, and Sun lounger). Built with a solid wooden seat frame covered with woven webbing, mounted on a separate bentwood underframe, they were radically different from the heavy upholstered furniture of the time. Light, flexible, and ergonomically shaped, they were designed to fit the body rather than force the body to adapt to the chair. Out of these experiments, the Working chair grew the now-classic Eva chair, a everyday chair of lasting influence.

In 1943 came the Pernilla lounge chairs as developments of the Lounge chair and the Sun lounger. The chairs where named after journalist Pernilla Tunberger who had praised Mathsson’s work. These reclined, webbed chairs – Pernilla 2, and 3 – translated his ergonomic and material innovations into pieces for rest and leisure. Pernilla 2 is still produced today by Bruno Mathsson International, while the licensed Pernilla 69, introduced by Dux in 1969, offered a more padded, upholstered alternative for a broader audience. This distinction between MI’s airy, webbed construction and Dux’s heavier, upholstered version remains central to their different identities.

»Over his career, Mathsson designed about 100 different furniture models, of which 30–40 are still in production today.«

The 1960s marked Mathsson’s international recognition. In 1964, the company was restructured and renamed Bruno Mathsson International, under which many of his later designs were produced. The company name itself inspired the naming of several pieces – such as Mio, Mirja, and Milton.
The same year, he collaborated with Danish mathematician Piet Hein (and architect Arne Jacobsen) to create the Superellips table, which transformed a mathematical curve into one of modernism’s most enduring table forms. Two years later, in 1966, came his futuristic Jetson chair – a chrome-framed swivel chair with a hammock-like fabric seat, celebrated for its lightness and space-age aesthetic. Soon after, Dux released its own padded, fully upholstered version, paralleling the split seen with the Pernilla.

Mathsson was during this time working directly with Dux, and in 1969 he designed the Karin chair, a low lounge chair with a chrome-plated frame, casters, and padded upholstery. Hugely popular in Swedish homes, the chair embodies comfort and mobility in equal measure. A later version, the Karin 73, refined the upholstery while preserving the original frame.

Parallel to his furniture, Mathsson also experimented with architecture, designing glass-walled homes inspired by American study houses, emphasizing light, openness, and the connection between indoors and outdoors. After the 1960s, however, his architectural output diminished, while his furniture continued to define Scandinavian modernism.

Find DIS selection of Bruno Mathsson furnitures!

What makes Bruno Mathsson unique among modern designers is his foundation in carpentry. While contemporaries often approached furniture as architects or artists, Mathsson began with the craftsman’s knowledge of wood, joints, and comfort. His designs – from the early mod. 36 chairs to the Pernilla series, Eva, Karin, Jetson, and Superellips – form a continuous story of ergonomic innovation and timeless elegance.

Over his career, Mathsson designed around 100 different furniture models, of which 30–40 are still in production today. His pieces remain highly sought after both as new editions and on the vintage market, where their durability and craftsmanship ensure they continue to age gracefully.