// The iconic #71 Exclusive to Great Dane

We have been working with Moller for many years and I have had the privilege of visiting the factory and meeting with the now owner and son of Jorgen Moller many times. He is always very chatty and recounts wonderful stories of his childhood coming to the factory with his father. One of the really fun stories was how he would come in after school and hammer the wonderful little metal mm on every piece of furniture, which they still do today, though he doesn’t do it anymore though. He was paid 10dkk per stamp!

Watch Jensen - a dedicated Moller craftsman (above) at work.

I often wander through the factory, which I am kindly allowed to do, always finding little hidden sections of the workshop, that have clearly not been used for years as there is a thick layer of sawdust. I sometimes find wonderful old jigs that were used in the last or sample of wood or papercord. 

The smell is so vivid, I know it every time I walk into the workshop, in summer it is the warmth of the sun, combined with sawdust and oil, in winter it's crisp and fresh but the smell of the sawdust and wood and oil is a little more subtle. 

I feel very privileged to be able to experience these places, they have a soul that is such a joy to visit, when I visit I feel like a kid being allowed to walk around a factory, it really does push me to want to create and build more of the Scandinavian luxury we have become known for.

It was on one of these visits I started asking Morten Moller about the #71 dining chair, one of my favorites, we talked about how his dad used to drag the kids around the museums to look at antique jewelry as this was his inspiration for his designs. I asked and asked, every time I visited even if Morten wasn't there I asked, until finally 3 years on Morten agreed to produce the #71 in Oak. Only for Great Dane.

Enjoy the iconic #71

// How Gry Holmskov Creates

Last post we looked to the past and celebrated Nanna Ditzel as a design dame and all round inspiration. But what about the here and now? Who are the designers of the moment and what is inspiring them to create? This lead us to want to take a closer look at the brains behind some new pieces in our showrooms...

It's no secret we have fallen in love with our new Angel Stools, they are simple elegant and playful.
Their organic lines recalling natural forms serve as a reminder to slow down and take a seat, to just breathe and observe. Come late afternoon the stools play with soft sunshine and the shadows they cast are divine to say the least. Here they are in our on their first day in the office at around home-o'clock:

This wondrous stool's designer is Gry Holmskov who like her idols Hans Wegner and Finn Juhl, is a trained architect and furniture designer. Not content with merely aesthetically pleasing objects she is inspired by the whole lifecycle of a product. She is constantly spurred on by nature and the small details in life.

After sending her a short email asking her about her creative process Gry quickly responded with a plethora of images. This is one seriously inspired young designer! We felt instantly transported into her creative and bubbling mind. Her designs make all the more sense while flicking through these; the images she has curated are genuine and appreciative of the natural world, of all the little things and show her hard work!

 Jump into Gry's creative utopia for the next few minutes, we hope it will inspire you as it has us.

I N S P I R A T I O N 

                       

S K E T C H  P R O C E S S

C R E A T I N G

 

 

 

 

A  F I N I S H E D  P R O D U C T
Available at Great Dane

G R Y ' S  S T U D I O  A N D  P O R T R A I T S

What a talent.

Thank you Gry.

WEBSITE - Gry Holmskov

ANGEL STOOLS, NEW @GREAT DANE 

// The Tale of Ditzel and Dane

Nanna Ditzel was a true trailblazer for Scandinavian

furniture makers. Born in Copenhagen in 1923 she first 

trained as a cabinetmaker before studying at The Royal 

Academy of Fine Arts and The School of Arts and 

Crafts in Copenhagen. Finally she graduated in the field 

of furniture design.

Ditzel’s career encompassed jewellery, interior, 

furniture and fabric design. Her organic and 

contemporary aesthetic is without an inch of a 

doubt still relevant today. Her prevailing style 

transcends all disciplines of design and she 

designed many classic jewellery pieces for George 

Jensen.

The collaboration between us and Nanna's designs began when Great Dane contacted Snedkergaarden

a boutique factory in Denmark in charge of manufacturing highest quality Ditzel designs – in 2011 to 

bring Ditzel’s designs to Australia, we had no idea the impact Nanna Ditzel’s designs would end up 

having on our very own shores.

After being approached to provide Nanna Ditzel pieces for none other than the Sydney Opera House’s

Western Foyer we were pretty sure we weren’t the only ones to share the affinity for these amazing 

pieces. Beautiful, simple, elegant and most importantly, very, very comfortable.

To us she is a true inspiration and naturally, we are in constant admiration of her designs. So enamored

we are that we could not stand to part with these customer orders in lush shades of green without 

conducting a spontaneous, abstract and may we say quite intimate photo shoot - obsessive as we are 

about great truly design. Behind the scenes Anton directing the shoot between sending emails:

As we reflect on how we create this month it’s the perfect moment to share a little bit of Ditzel with

you. This is Nanna Ditzel perhaps as you haven’t seen before. Enjoy!