Makers & Designers

Finn Juhl was born on the 30th January 1912 in Frederiksberg, Denmark. From an early age he aspired to become an art historian, but his father, a textile wholesaler, considered this a flimsy career and persuaded Juhl instead to study architecture. Juhl joined the Architecture School at the Royal Danish Acedemy of Fine Arts where he studied under Kay Fisker for four years, from 1930–1934. Upon graduation, he worked for ten years at Vilhelm Lauritzen’s architectural firm, in close collaboration with Viggo Boesen. He worked on many high profile projects, such as the interior design of the national Danish broadcaster Danmarks Radio’s Radio Building, and in 1943 he received the C.F Hansen prize for young architects.

In 1945 he decided to leave Vilhelm Lauritzens company to set up his own design practice in Copenhagen, which specialised in the design of furniture and interiors. He worked with, among others, cabinet maker Niels Vodder and he quickly became known for making unusual, expressive and sculptural pieces, which were influenced by modern, abstract art. It wasnt until a meeting with the famous American architect Edgar Kaufmann Jr that Juhl’s career began to take off internationally. In 1952 Juhl was involved in the design of the new headquarters of the United Nations in New York, which was one of his biggest projects to date. He was also commissioned to oversee the interiors of the Trusteeship Council Chamber — this is what sealed his name in the design world of being “The father of Danish Modern”.