Design by IKEA: A Cultural History

169 Pages·2014·64.099 MB·English

by  Sara Kristoffersson

DESIGN BY IKEA
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DESIGN BY IKEA
A CULTURAL HISTORY
SARA KRISTOFFERSSON
Translated by William Jewson

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Bloomsbury Academic
An imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
50 Bedford Square 1385 Broadway
London New York
WC1B 3DP NY 10018
UK USA
www.bloomsbury.com
Bloomsbury is a registered trade mark of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
First published 2014
© Sara Kristoffersson, 2014
Sara Kristoffersson has asserted her right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988,
to be identifi ed as Author of this work.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or
by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information
storage or retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publishers.
No responsibility for loss caused to any individual or organization acting on or refraining from
action as a result of the material in this publication can be accepted by Bloomsbury or
the author.
British Library Cataloguing-i n-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN: HB: 978-0-8578-5813-9
PB: 978-0-8578-5814-6
ePDF: 978-1-4725-8737-4
ePub: 978-0-8578-5815-3
Library of Congress Cataloging-i n-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the Library of Congress.
Typeset by Refi neCatch, Bungay, Suffolk

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CONTENTS
List of illustrations vii
Acknowledgments ix
1 Confi guring IKEA 1
A furniture company’s history and legitimacy 2
Facts and fi ctions 5
The self-image in a landscape of manuals 8
2 Once upon a time 15
The story of IKEA 19
The ‘IKEA Way’: what and how to do it 22
I’m your man 29
Different ways of narrating IKEA 33
‘Not for the rich. But for the wise’ 38
Robin Hood of furniture industry: from the high street to the Masses 40
3 Swedish stories and design 51
Blue and yellow linguistics 54
The nature-loving Swedes and the thrifty people of Småland 55
Welfare and the welfare state 57
Beauty for all 58
Swedish modern and Scandinavian design 62
House styles and Swedish collections 63
Images on the global arena 67
From copycat to master of style 70
4 Sweden designed by IKEA 79
The brand state 79
Brand Sweden 82
Sweden loves IKEA 84
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vi CONTENTS
5 Counter-narratives 91
From social role model to brand 91
Beyond the blond 93
Old wine in new bottles 95
IKEA in the limelight 99
The socially responsible corporation 101
6 Democracy for sale 109
The best story wins 109
Seductive interiors 114
References 125
Index 137
ILLUSTRATIONS
Plates
Plate 1 ‘Functional. Not Fancy.’
Plate 2 Ingvar Kamprad among co-w orkers, 1999.
Plate 3 Ad, ‘Embrace Change,’ 2009.
Plate 4 Ad, ‘New York? Älmhult!,’ mid-1980s.
Plate 5 Ad with Viking.
Plate 6 Ad, ‘IKEAs själ’ [The Soul of IKEA], 1981.
Plate 7 IKEA’s logotype in red and white.
Plate 8 IKEA Food Packaging.
Plate 9 Carl Larsson, ‘Blomsterfönstret,’ Ur ‘Ett Hem.’
Plate 10 Interior from ‘Stockholm’ collection.
Plate 11 Bed ‘Skattmansö,’ from ‘IKEA 1700-tal’ collection, 1993.
Plate 12 ‘PS IKEA SKÅP,’ Thomas Sandell, 1995.
Plate 13 Ad, ‘NY Gets Flat Packed.’
Plate 14 Ad, ‘Länge leve mångfalden’ [Long Live Diversity], 2008.
Plate 15 ‘Swedish.’
Plate 16 Lamp, Anders Jakobsen, 2005.
Plate 17 Catalog: same product, different country. Part of a page from
IKEA’s 2013 catalog distributed in the United Kingdom and
Saudi Arabia.
Figures
2.1 Cover, T he future is fi lled with opportunities , 1984. 16
2.2 IKEA Tillsammans, IKEA Cultural Center, Älmhult. 17
2.3 Postcard from the Inter IKEA Cultural Center, Älmhult. 23
2.4 Opening the new store in Älmhult, November 2012. 24
2.5 Ballerup, Denmark, probably 1969. 28
2.6 Ingvar Kamprad, outside the fi rst store in Älmhult, 1960s. 32
2.7 DVD, ‘IKEA Stories.’ 34
2.8 ‘Lövet’ [Leaf], mid-1950s. 36
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viii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
2.9 BILLY , 2009. 37
2.10 Ad, ‘Learning How to Pronounce,’ 1985. 41
2.11 Ad, ‘Hörde du om mannen som köpte så dyra glas att han inte hade
råd med cognac?’ [Did you hear about the man who bought such
expensive glasses that he could not afford any brandy?], early 1980s. 42
3.1 Logo, ‘Ikéa,’ 1948–1949. 52
3.2 Ad, ‘IKEA is Closing.’ 53
3.3 Wilhelm Kåge, Soup plate, manufactured by Gustavsberg, Sweden, 1917. 60
3.4 Sigurd Lewerentz, Poster ‘Stockholm Exhibition,’ 1930. 61
3.5 Design Democratico, exhibition in Milan, 1995. 66
3.6 ‘PS IKEA VAS,’ Pia Wallén, 1995. 68
3.7 Font ‘Scandinavian.’ 69
4.1 ‘Open Skies, Open Minds.’ 80
4.2 Ad, ‘Monsieur le Président, nous savons que le modèle suédois
vous fascine, mais pourquoi aller si loin’ [Monsieur President,
we know that the Swedish model fascinates you, but why go
so far], 1982 or 1983. 86
5.1 Children’s playroom, 1980s. 97
6.1 Exhibition ‘IKEA at Liljevalchs,’ Liljevalchs Konsthall, Stockholm, 2009. 111
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This book was written as part of a research project entitled Svensk design? Om Ikeas
estetik på 1980-och 90-talet. Export av ‘svensk design’ och nationella myter [Swedish
design? Ikea’s aesthetics in the 1980s and 1990s. The exportation of ‘Swedish Design’
and national myths]. The project is funded by the Swedish Foundation for Humanities and
Social Sciences. I am also indebted to the following for fi nancial assistance: Torsten
Söderbergs Stiftelse, Estrid Ericson Stiftelse, Åke Wibergs Stiftelse and Stiftelsen San
Michele. I should also like to thank Kim Salomon for scrutinizing the manuscript and for
his invaluable comments.
Please note that Inter IKEA Systems B.V. is the exclusive proprietor of all rights in and
to the IKEA Retail Systems, which includes the IKEA trademarks, throughout the world.
The Company name, the term “IKEA”, and all related names, logos, product and service
names, designs and slogans are trademarks of Inter IKEA Systems B.V. Images and
trademarks from IKEA Retail Systems are used in this publication by kind permission of
Inter IKEA Systems B.V.
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