This year's 3DaysofDesign firmly cemented the annual gathering as one of the major events in the design calendar, catapulting it from its Scandinavian roots to the international stage.
For three days between 7-9 June 2023, the Danish capital opened its doors to showcase the work of nearly 300 exhibitors. Materiality played a crucial role this year with designers toying with innovative uses for wood and glass, as did the importance of Danish heritage. Read on to find out what our favourites moments were.
As collaborations go, this one was unexpected. But what a treat! The historic Danish lighting brand turned to rebellious Brooklyn-based glassblowers Home in Heven to artistically reimagine its 'Pale Rose Collection'. Displayed during 3DaysofDesign in a small workshed in the courtyard outside its Copenhagen flagship showroom, this miniature range was a fantastical delight - think a 'VL45 Radiohus' pendant with tentacles twisting out of it, or a 'PH' table lamp with cute devil horns. At the moment, there are no plans for these one-off masterpieces to become part of the Louis Poulsen collection, but we are promised that they will be sold at auction. When and where is so far a bit of a closely-held secret, but we will be keeping a close eye on things. louispoulsen.com
Guests were given the green light to play Alice in Wonderland and go on an adventure throughout the many rooms of the &Tradition's four-storey Copenhagen headquarters, discovering collections by Space Copenhagen, All the Way to Paris and others. Perhaps most memorable was Spanish designer Jamie Hayon's colourful vignette, which comprised larger-than-life cutout figures interspersed with his recently launched jugs and vases for the company. andtradition.com
Not content with providing the stand-out installation during April's Salone del Mobile in Milan (yes we're still talking about it), Gubi tackled its local design fest with equal gusto, managing to hold some goodies back to pack into its vast Nordhavnen showroom. Alongside new pieces from GamFratesi and a retro fabulous armchair by Illum Wikkelso, given the hot summery weather, a perfectly-timed exclusive collaboration with rebellious New York fashion label Noah was a star of the show. Founded by Estelle Bailey-Babenzien and Brendon Babenzien, former design director of Supreme, Noah came up with a colourful special edition of Gubi's 'MR01 Outdoor Lounge Chair' and a companion beachwear line. Four new colours have been selected for the chair's low-slung rope supports in yellow, royal blue, navy and grey, made from high-performance, waterproof polyester used in sailing. And, if you need some stylish summer kit to match, look no further than the coordinating swimshorts, hat, jumper, beach towel and oversized beach bag all featuring the same vibrant shades as a highlight. gubi.com
Over 300 hammer marks were used to create this glistening centrepiece by architect and designer David Thulstrup, which took four months to produce. The sterling silver item was displayed on a single plinth on the first floor of Georg Jensen's showroom alongside some of the company's archive pieces and additional material that inspired Thulstrup's product. georgjensen.com
While we're all fairly familiar with different types of timber, it's pretty safe to say that when it comes to weight, we're the first to admit that we're pretty clueless. It's exactly this that Christian+Jade (Christian Hammer Juhl and Jade Chan) hoped to shed light on with their exhibition, Weight of Wood. Through a series of playful, tactile objects such as wooden balls and more functional pieces such as a rocking chair, the duo demonstrated how no two pieces of wood weigh the same, inviting viewers to question how this quality might be manipulated in the real world. Visitors were encouraged to interact with the pieces on display, which were located in wood flooring company Dinesen's showroom. dinesen.com
Set within the prestigious Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts (where some of the most well-known Danish designers learnt their craft), 'Expressions of Character' showcased staples from the brand's past collections. In the lofty rooms on the first floor, classics such as Arne Jacobsen's stacking chair were disassembled and artistically strung up in pieces in the hope that 'visitors will feel the inspiration drawn from Scandinavian minimalistic architectural expression and a focus on the raw materials and principles of Danish design.' Outside, the courtyard served as the backdrop for the outdoor collection from Skagerak by Fritz Hansen. fritzhansen.com
In classically modest Danish fashion, this most recent re-issue by House of Finn Juhl has been dubbed 'perhaps the designer's least iconic chair'. There's a good reason though why the brand chose to pluck this piece from its archive to launch during 3DaysofDesign: it's a Danish design with a truly international heritage. Unlike the organic lines that characterize much of Finn Juhl's work, this piece was influenced by the designer's time working in America - in 1950, he was given the task of designing the Trusteeship Council Chamber at the new United Nations headquarters in New York. The names he met during that time, from Le Corbusier to Charles and Ray Eames, inspired this more streamlined, but still impeccably crafted, chair. finnjuhl.com
Not content with launching a conservative one or two products at 3DaysofDesign, Hay packed its vast Copenhagen showroom, Hay House, with highlights from its upcoming autumn collections. There was the new 'Arcs' trolley and mirror by Muller van Severen - a continuation of the design duo's already successful range - as well as the 'Apex' lamp by British designer John Tree, 'Chisel', a moulded plywood lounge chair by Andreas Bergsaker, the 'Apollo' chandelier by Studio 0405, the 'Boa' table by stefan Diez. the list goes on. What's clear is that Hay's dedication to working with the best designers, up-and-coming and established, continues. hay.dk
If you missed String's 'Pira G2' launch at the Stockholm Furniture Festival earlier this year, you were given a second chance to see the shelving unit on Danish soil at The Odd Fellow Palazzo. Architect Anna von Schewen and the industrial designer Björn Dahlström updated the 1954 classic to respond to modern needs - conveniently, each shelf can carry up to 50 kilograms. stringfurniture.com
Influential architect and one of the biggest names in Danish furniture design Poul Kjærholm created the lightweight and stackable 'PK1' in 1955 as his first chair. Fast forward to 2023, and Carl Hansen & Søn has launched a new, more contemporary version. It has been updated in a slightly larger size (the dimensions of the chair have been scaled up by six per cent to match the increase in people's height today) and with new steel and durable paper cord materials. carlhansen.com
The expert cabinetmaker transformed its peaceful city-centre showroom into a multi-faceted creative hub for the duration of the festival. The space, which had been newly redesigned by New York-based Bunn Studio, perfectly showcased the brand's covetable kitchens and storage systems. In addition, designer Luca Nichetto's furniture for De La Espada, as well as pieces from Brdr. Krugetr, Anker & Co, makdt Studio and more, placed Garde Hvalsoe's work in the context of an actual living space. Last but not least, the walls and surfaces became home to a special exhibition by the artist and furniture designer Sara Martinsen entitled 'The Origin of Things'. gardehvalsoe.dk
Norwegian artist Anna Maria Øfstedal Eng's sculptural pieces straddle the border between art and functionality and her latest collaboration with Ferm Living is no exception. Crafted from recycled aluminium, the unique piece features undulating lines and is inspired by a mountainside in Gudbrandsdalen, Norway. fermliving.co.uk
At this year's 3DaysofDesign Bang & Olufsen seized the opportunity to champion its new 'Beosound A5' speaker by GamFratesi, giving design enthusiasts an insight into not only the audio quality (you could pick from the curated vinyl collection and hear that yourself, played via a connected Beogram 4000c turntable), but also the ideas behind the piece. Speaking to Stine Gam and Enrico Fratesi, the duo behind design studio GamFratesi, it was clear that materiality and craftsmanship were the watchwords. The paper raffia used on the façade of the speaker (another version is available in oak) was a starting point for the design, with both designers keen to use it, but for very different reasons - for Gam, it summoned up images of the woven seats of classic Danish furniture, for Fratesi, there were images of Panama straw hats. The duo designed the posters for the first ever 3DaysofDesign event 10 years ago, so this project - their first ever tech design - nicely marked a decade of involvement. bang-olufsen.com
Thanks to the invention of its patented circular material Matek®, ecologically and ethically minded Danish brand Mater has long been turning waste into desirable designs - its 'Conscious' chair and 'Earth' stool are just two past highlights. For this year's 3DaysofDesign, as well as highlighting the climate emergency that drive its work (each year, 100 billion tonnes of materials are used globally for consumer goods, with only 7,2% being recycled), the company also launched two new products. The 'Lily' table and 'Compound' chair, both by OEO Studio, are launches that offer hope for a more sustainable future for the furniture industry. As OEO Studio founding partner Thomas Lykke says, 'I believe Matek® can play a vital role in creating a better, greener world'. materdesign.com
Yellow kept popping up during 3DaysofDesign - and we aren't just talking about the event's branded balloons that marked its many venues. For Danish brand Vipp, though, the limited-edition colour choice for its instantly-recognisable bin, designed back in 1939 by founder Holger Nielsen for his wife's hairdressing salon, was picked for personal rather than trend-led reasons. 'We have celebrated my father and his pedal bin incessantly at Vipp. And with good reason, since the company is built on his product. But it's time to highlight the role that my mother played in this success story,' said Jette Egelund, daughter of Marie and Holger and owner of Vipp. Dedicated to Marie, this collection is dressed in a soft buttercup hue that was a mainstay of her wardrobe. vipp.com