Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/130754
Scanning the Horizon Maria Wettergren has an eye for the innovative, and all things Scandinavian. IMAGES COURTESY OF MARIA WETTERGREN BY SUSAN BOULLIER Grethe Sørensen's Headlights (top), Rush Hour (above) and Eske Rex's Measuring Space. "Some of the strongest design of the 20th and 21st centuries has come from Scandinavia," says Maria Wettergren, whose Paris gallery specializes in contemporary Scandinavian design. "I think the secret is the special link to tradition combined with something quite minimal, focused and innovative. The designers I represent are not creating decoration, although of course there is a decorative element, but also intellectual, philosophical content with a historical link based on reflection and research." Following art history studies at the University of Copenhagen, Wettergren moved to Paris to run Dansk Møbelkunst Gallery in 2002. When she de- 58 CULTURED cided to "go contemporary" in 2010, she did so by starting her own gallery because "there was a niche in the market that hadn't been taken—so I took it!" Among the first designers she worked with were Mathias Bengtsson, Astrid Krogh, Ditte Hammerstrøm, Louise Campbell and Rasmus Fenhann. "They were the cornerstones of my project," Wettergren says. "They are constantly innovating on a deep level, and I love this type of radical beauty that makes us dream about the future." At Design Miami/Basel, Wettergren will present Bengtsson's sculptural and poetic Growth chair. Interesting counterparts to this organic piece are the strictly geometric Kubo work by Fenhann and the simple brilliance of the magnetic Measuring Space pieces by Eske Rex. Many of the designers Wettergren works with combine the heritage of Scandinavian craftsmanship with radical technology—like the highly covetable fiber-optic weaving compositions by Krogh and the remarkable tapestries translated from photographic pixels by Grethe Sørensen. "A good work of design today is one that can maintain a dialogue with different artistic disciplines. It is important too that the designer makes us forget the complicated technical procedures and creates something of beauty that is both poetic and playful," says Wettergren.