A FULL CIRCLE

Eero Aarnio，一位芬兰艺术家 

芬兰著名设计大师 Eero Aarnio 在本届西岸艺术与设计博览会上呈现其在亚洲的首个大型展览“圆周之旅”。展览的展位单元设于西岸艺术中心 A 馆A133，回顾他各个时期的标志性作品，从其开创性的经典作品“球椅”，到最新的设计作品“Kisu”。此外，Aarnio的设计还将首次以版画和大型雕塑的形式亮相。

Eero Aarnio, An Artist from Finland

Renowned Finnish designer Eero Aarnio presents his first major exhibition in Asia, "A Full Circle," at West Bund Art & Design 2024. The booth section of the exhibition is located in A133 of Hall A at the West Bund Art Center and traces Aarnio’s illustrious career, from his groundbreaking Ball Chair to his latest design, Kisu. Additionally, it debuts Aarnio’s designs as prints and large-scale sculptures.

球椅的故事

在20世纪60年代初，Eero Aarnio 以自由职业者的身份开启的职业生涯。当时，他还是一位默默无闻的设计师，梦想着创造一件能让人们铭记的家具作品。他一直对帆船充满兴趣，并熟悉了新材料——玻璃钢。他想知道是否可以在船舶行业之外利用这种材料。是否能用玻璃钢设计家具？

Eero 知道可塑性塑料最好的形态是曲线。一个封闭的球体几乎可以承受任何外力。他找到了这个新材料最实用的形态。恰好Aarnio一家需要一把足够大的椅子，可以让他、妻子Pirkko，以及他们的两个女儿享受坐在一起的家中时光。尽管功能性一直是他的首要目标，Eero Aarnio 却绝不甘于平凡。他对妻子说：“我要做一把椅子，当它被放在商店橱窗，没有人能路过而不驻足。”他总是喜爱标新立异，一鸣惊人。 

第一个球椅原型于1963年诞生，至今仍在Aarnio一家位于Veikkola的家中。1966年，球椅在科隆家具展上首次亮相。在展会期间，这款新产品被销往30个国家。《赫尔辛基日报》于1966年11月25日发表了第一篇报道：“世界上最激动人心的椅子在科隆国际家具展上展出。” Eero 在他的新闻剪报边缘亲笔写道：“一切都始于此！” 不久之后，《纽约时报》和其他媒体相继报道了球椅。几年内，球椅风靡全球，几十年后，它跻身世界各地的设计博物馆收藏，还成为了多部电影、音乐视频和杂志封面中的明星。

尽管 Eero Aarnio 以太空时代的设计和美学享誉世界，但他在设计球椅时从未有过未来主义的意图。球椅的诞生恰逢尤里·加加林成为第一个进入太空的人，这纯属巧合。那个时代的文化热点对他来说依旧无关紧要。至今，他最喜爱的球椅是白色外壳和黑色内衬的版本。他强调缝线在颜色中隐没的感觉，仿佛一种神奇的物质在椅子里弥散开来。坐在里面的人进入自己的内心世界，有如一个茧巢屏蔽了外界的喧嚣。未来主义？也许。标志性？毫无疑问。。

The Story of the Ball Chair

After starting his career as a freelancer in the beginning of the 1960s, Eero Aarnio was still an unknown designer dreaming of creating a furniture piece that people would remember. He had always been fascinated by sailing boats and had familiarized himself with the new material, fiberglass. He wondered if one could exploit this material outside of the boat industry. Could he design furniture out of fiberglass?

Eero knew that the best form for malleable plastic is curve. A closed ball could endure almost anything. He had found the most practical form for the new material he was working with. The Aarnios also needed a chair that would be large enough for all four of the family, him and his wife Pirkko, and their two daughters, to sit in together at home. Even though functionality was always his first aim, Eero Aarnio is no ordinary designer. He said to his wife: “I will make a chair that when it is put in a shop window, no one will just walk past it.” He had always loved to provoke, to cause a stir.

The first prototype of the Ball Chair was created in 1963, which still presents in the Aarnio family’s current home in Veikkola. The Ball Chair made its debut at the Cologne Furniture Fair of 1966, where the fair the new it-product was sold to 30 countries within the week. The first piece in the Finnish newspaper Helsingin Sanomat stated 25.11.1966: “The most exciting chair in the world is on show at the Cologne International Furniture Fair.” Eero wrote in his own hand in the margins of his press clip: It all began from this! Soon after, the Ball Chair was mentioned in the New York Times, followed by other media. Within a few years the Ball Chair achieved the status of an international celebrity, and decades later it can be found in the collections of design museums around the world, starring in several movies, music videos and magazine covers.

Although, Eero Aarnio has been praised for his space-aged design and aesthetics, futurism had never been his intention when designing the Ball Chair. It was pure coincidence that the Ball Chair was created around the same time when Juri Gagarin had been the first man in space. Reflections of the cultural preoccupations of the time still remain irrelevant for the designer. To this day his favorite Ball Chair is one with a white shell and black upholstering. He fosters the feeling of seams drowning in color, like a magical substance spreading out in the chair. Sitting inside lies one’s own inner world and thoughts, a cocoon’s nest shielding from the outside noise. Futuristic? Maybe. Iconic? Most definitely.

Pony的故事

尽管早年的设计已经展现出独特的风格和特点，但Eero Aarnio将1973年的Pony视为他的第一件真正突破常规的设计作品。他重新思考了椅子的概念：人们几乎可以在任何地方坐下，座位不一定非要是传统的椅子或沙发，人们可以坐在楼梯上、石头上、树桩上、或者小马背上……于是，他决定设计一个可以像骑马一样坐上去的柔软动物造型。

Eero Aarnio的Pony并非普通的椅子，设计师本人更倾向于称其为“座位”。Eero设计Pony的初衷是为了提供一个舒适的坐姿体验。它的尺寸符合人体工学设计，高度正好适合背部和双腿放松。人们可以像骑马一样骑在上面，也可以侧坐。Eero最初设计了小尺寸版本给孩子们使用，但孩子也总是喜欢攀爬上更大的Pony。成人尺寸的版本看上去也像是孩子们的大型玩具。“当然了，我们都是大小孩，”Eero Aarnio如是说。

The Story of Pony

Although his previous pieces had already possessed uniqueness and characteristics, Eero Aarnio describes Pony as his first very unusual design. He thought about chairs. One can sit almost anywhere. A seat doesn’t even have to be a chair or a sofa. One can sit on the stairs, on a rock, on a tree stump, on a horse, on a pony… He decided to design a soft animal figure, which you could sit on, like riding a horse.

Eero Aarnio’s Pony is no regular chair. The designer himself prefers to rather call it a seat. Eero designed the Pony first and foremost to provide a comfortable form. The size came out of ergonomics, it is the perfect height for back and feet to rest. One can ride it or sit sideways on it. Eero initially designed the smaller size for children, however, the young have always been as keen on to climb on the larger Pony. It looks like a child’s oversized toy, even though the dimensions are designed for adults. “We are all big kids, of course”, says Eero Aarnio.

Kisu的故事

在20世纪40年代，Eero Aarnio 10岁时，全家住在赫尔辛基Kallio社区的一栋公寓。那里不允许养宠物，街上却常有流浪猫出没，小Eero时常把猫抱回位于公寓五楼的家中。母亲通常会允许Eero让猫在家里留宿一天，Eero很爱与猫玩耍。

尽管后来家里养了一只狗，Eero爱猫的情结一直都在。他说：“对我来说，猫总是一个很能令我共情的可爱动物形象。” Eero在创作生涯中设计了不少狗的造型和角色，在2020年，他觉得也终于是时候为猫设计一个。“Kisu”这个名字对Eero来说是个自然而然的选择，因为“Kisumisu”曾是Eero童年时全家对猫咪的亲切昵称。

The Story of Kisu

When Eero was 10 years old, their family lived in an apartment building in Kallio. They were not allowed to bring pets there, and therefore, the family didn’t have any pets at that time. It was the 1940s and stray cats would wander in the streets in the part of the city where the Aarnios lived. Young Eero would catch these cats and carry them home in his arms to the family’s apartment on the 5th floor. Eero’s mother would let him keep the cat for one day and he loved to play with them.

Even though, later on the family ended up having a dog, Eero has always found cats charming as well. “Cat has always been a very sympathetic animal character for me”, he says. Eero has designed several dog figures and characters during his career, and in 2020, he finally decided it was time for the cat as well. The name Kisu was a natural choice for him as in his childhood, Kisumisu, was a common term of endearment for cats in the Aarnio family.

香皂椅的故事

在20世纪60年代，球椅取得了国际成功，新款球椅被销往世界各地，在当年的运输成本可想而知是多么高昂。Eero意识到，球椅的包装箱中有多少空的空间被衬垫塞满。以功能性为首要目标，他思考如何在这片空间中设计出一件新的家具。完成的椅子的形状宛如一颗糖果，在中文世界则常被称为“香皂椅”。

这是第一件完全适合室内和室外使用的作品。这把椅子甚至能够漂浮在水面上。这种轻松的人体工程学设计吸引了许多人。1968年，Eero因香皂椅的舒适造型和独特美学获得了美国工业奖。他本人认为这款椅子的设计和人体工程学非常出色，几乎不需要垫子。《纽约时报》也将香皂椅誉为对人体最理想的设计。在Eero家中，你常常可以看到他坐在经典的绿色香皂椅上。

The Story of Pastil

After the international success of the Ball Chair in the 1960s, new Balls were sold and shipped all around the world. One can only imagine the costs of shipping during that time. Eero realized how much empty, cushioned space was sent around the world in packaging crate of the Ball chair. Once again, functionality as his first aim, he thought a new piece of furniture could be fitted in this void. When it was ready, it looked like a pastille. The sweetie had been born.

For the first time, this piece was completely suitable for both outdoor and indoor use. The remarkable feature was, that this chair would even float on water. Most importantly, the effortless ergonomics appealed to many. In 1968 Eero received the American Industrial Award for Pastil’s comfortable form and unique aesthetic. Eero himself feels that the design and ergonomics are so good, one doesn’t really need cushions for it. Even the New York Times referred to Pastil having the most ideal design to human body. At home, you can catch Eero sitting in the classic green Pastil.

泡泡椅的故事

Eero年少时对肥皂泡充满迷恋。在逃离战争来到乡村的年代，他记得曾在谷仓里吹出巨大的肥皂泡，这是他此前在城市中从未有过的体验。那些泡泡随风起舞，飘向遥远的田野，田野里弥漫着透明泡泡的景象深深印在他的脑海里。

在球椅取得成功后，Eero以功能性为目标深化他的设计。尽管球椅是一个完美的避世之所，Eero却发现在球椅里内部光线不足，并非一个用于阅读的理想所在。他开始思考椅子的外壳能否用透明材料制作？如今，在泡泡椅中阅读光线充足，自然光从四面八方充溢其间。

泡泡椅在各种场景中频频亮相，从杂志到广告和音乐视频。它在世界各地的博物馆收藏中也随处可见，代表着20世纪60年代的设计美学。至今，泡泡椅仍然是Eero最喜爱的作品之一，当然还有那原始的银色坐垫。人们只需坐下，便能欣赏到自然最基本的形式。在某种程度上，Eero不认为气泡椅是他本人的设计，因为它更像是大自然的杰作。

The Story of Bubble

As a young boy Eero Aarnio had been fascinated by soap bubbles. In the city he had never made one but fleeing the war to the countryside he remembers blowing huge soap bubbles from a barn. The bubbles would take off with the wind and drift far away to the fields. The image of a field filled with transparent soap bubbles stuck with him.

After the success of the Ball Chair, Eero carried on designing again with a functional aim. Although, a perfect hiding place from the outside world, Eero had found that reading in the Ball was not ideal. There was not enough light inside this cocoon. He wondered, could the shell be made of a transparent material? Now, one won’t run out of light reading in the Bubble, it’s flooding with natural light from all directions.

The Bubble Chair has been featured in various different projects ranging from magazines to advertising and music videos. The Bubble can be found in museum collections all over the world, representing and symbolizing the aesthetics of the 1960s design. To this day Bubble is still Eero’s own favorite piece, with the original silver cushions of course. One can simply sit down and marvel one of the most basic forms of nature. In a way Eero does not take credit for designing the Bubble, it was done by nature.

西红柿椅的故事

在香皂椅取得成功后，Eero Aarnio赢得了国际关注，并与世界各地的客户建立了联系。20世纪70年代初的一天，他得知一位美国眼科医生喜欢坐在香皂椅中，漂浮在游泳池的水面上阅读报纸。他遇到的问题是，香皂椅时不时会翻倒，把报纸弄湿。他希望Eero能设计一把能够稳稳浮在水面的椅子。Eero认真考虑了这条“客户反馈”，并欣然接受了这个挑战。

香皂椅确实可以漂浮，并能承载一个人，但它在水上不完全稳定。Eero回忆道：“我想，如果我加上扶手和更明确的椅背，那在水中就会很惬意，于是西红柿椅应运而生。”西红柿椅的名称反映了从正面看去的两个圆形，恰似单词“tOmatO”中的两个圆圈。此外，鲜红的颜色让Eero想到市场广场，他曾在那里看到一个摊位，上面放满了深红色的西红柿。他一直钟情于那些在各种语言中都能传达相同意义的名称。

西红柿椅与Eero Aarnio的其他玻璃钢家具作品相得益彰，造型丰盈、几何对称，饶有趣味。这把椅子展现了玻璃钢所能提供的最佳特性，赋予作品流畅的线条、奢华的光泽和持久的耐用性。从某种意义上说，西红柿椅实现了Eero早年想成为船只设计师的梦想。

The Story of Tomato

After the success of the Pastil chair, Eero Aarnio had gained international attention, and made connections with his customers all around the world. One day in the early 1970s he heard that an American ophthalmologist loved to read the newspaper in the pool, floating in the Pastil chair. The only problem was that from time to time he would flip over and of course, newspapers and water don’t go well together. He wished Eero would design a chair that would stay steadily afloat. Eero began to think about this ‘customer feedback’ and accepted the challenge.

It was true, the Pastil chair does float and it can carry a person across water, but it is not completely stable for this purpose. “I thought, if I would add armrests and a more defined chair back then it would be fun for the water, and so the Tomato chair was born”, Eero recalls. The Tomato was named to reflect the two round shapes one sees looking at it from the front, like two circles in the word tOmatO. Moreover, the red color reminded Eero of a market square where he would see a stand and a table full of deep red tomatoes. In addition, he has always fancied names that would internationally mean the same in every language. 

Merging perfectly in the collection of Eero Aarnio’s other fiberglass furniture, the Tomato is voluptuous, geometrically symmetrical and nowhere near dull. The chair celebrates the best features fiberglass can offer, giving the piece smooth form, luxurious shine, and durability. In a sense, designing the Tomato chair Eero had fulfilled his desires from early adulthood to become a boat designer. 

关于Eero Aarnio

Eero Aarnio (1932-) 是我们这个时代最重要的设计师之一，他的作品对设计行业产生了深远的影响。Eero Aarnio 创作了许多具有极高辨识度和亲和力的设计，如球椅、泡泡椅、香皂椅和Pony椅，这些作品已经深深植根于流行文化中。自20世纪60年代问世以来，这些标志性设计通过时尚摄影、室内设计杂志、广告、音乐视频、游戏和其他媒体在全球范围内广泛展示。

Aarnio的设计语言通常被视为波普艺术和太空时代风格的欢乐结合。曾在现代主义时期设计大师的工作室中工作过的他，开创了一种完全个人化的独特设计哲学，超越了经典家具设计的范畴，进入了艺术的领域。Aarnio在巧妙运用材料、结合人体工程学和设计实用性方面的能力超群，同时他的大量作品也拥有独特的雕塑感，使他成为设计领域独树一帜的大师。

点击此处阅读Eero Aarnio展览“圆周之旅”户外单元作品介绍

 About Eero Aarnio

Eero Aarnio (1932-) is one of the most important designers of our time. His work has left a lasting impression on the design industry. Having created many immediately recognizable and relatable designs such as the Ball Chair, the Bubble Chair, the Pastil Chair, and the Pony Chair, Eero Aarnio’s work has been cemented in popular culture. Ever since their creation in the 1960s, these iconic designs have been widely displayed internationally through fashion photography, interior design magazines, advertising, music videos, games, and other media. 

Aarnio’s design vocabulary has often been seen as a joyful mix of Pop Art and space age. Having worked in the studios of the modernist period’s master designers, Aarnio carved out a completely personal, unique design philosophy that goes beyond classic furniture design and ventures into art. While masterfully using materials, respecting ergonomics and designing for purpose, many of Aarnio’s creations have a distinct sculptural appearance that is unmatched within the industry. 

Click here to read the introduction to the outdoor section of Eero Aarnio's exhibition "A Full Circle"