Nanna Ditzel
One of Danish design’s most distinctive personalities.
Her desire to explore spaces and experiment with techniques on the edge of what is possible led Nanna Ditzel – one of Danish design’s most distinctive personalities – to become acquainted with the entire design universe. This unconventional approach to the design process, together with an extensive knowledge of the craft, spawned a range of innovative designs from jewellery to textiles and furniture. Throughout her 60-year career, Nanna Ditzel established herself as one of the most distinctive figures in Danish design. She rethought the functionalist design tradition with her imaginative expressions and left her mark on thousands of private homes and public forums.
From the outset, Nanna Ditzel’s work was characterised by organic and dynamic forms inspired by nature’s diversity. She experimented constantly and managed to create a very personal and expressive idiom, characterised by a profound desire for freedom and an unrelenting urge to improve on well-known objects of use. Nanna Ditzel could not and did not want to feel confined in her work, and she and her husband, furniture designer Jørgen Ditzel, became a natural and important part of the avantgarde designers of the time, who dared to embrace change and innovation and who fit into an
international context.
Like several of her contemporaries, Nanna Ditzel first qualified as a cabinetmaker before continuing her studies at the Danish Design School and the School of Architecture. Here she was taught by, among others, Kaare Klint, who is regarded today as the reformer who, with his particular approach to architecture and design, radically abandoned the traditional and style-focused teaching of the time to instead focus on practical studies of architecture and furniture design. At a later time, however, Nanna Ditzel herself broke away from the Klintian school of thought. She followed her imagination and created designs in generous forms inspired by the organic modernism that had flourished on the international design stage during the 1940s.
Nanna Ditzel graduated as a furniture designer in 1946 and married her fellow student Jørgen Ditzel that same year. The two of them founded a design studio in 1946, which they ran together until Jørgen Ditzel’s death in 1961. During the 15 years they worked together, they managed to influence several aspects of Danish design, and their unique furniture pieces designed in materials such as rattan and wood were awarded both silver and gold medals at the world famous Milan Triennial exhibition. The couple also received the Lunning Prize, a Nordic design prize, in 1956.
The collaboration between Nanna and Jørgen Ditzel was enormously successful, and together they developed a range of furniture that broke with traditional design conventions. Combined with a spatial approach, they based their designs on the body and didn’t shy away from challenging familiar materials and craft methods. In many ways, their designs and their endeavour to discover new shapes and functions represented a kind of free play. The couple wanted to develop furniture that supported a freer and richer life. Many of their furniture pieces were created to fit their own needs. One such piece was the legendary high chair, designed by Nanna and Jørgen Ditzel in 1954, which is now part of the Danish Culture Canon.
Nanna Ditzel was still quite young in 1961 when she was suddenly left alone with three little girls and a design studio with a lot of challenging work to do. Nevertheless, during that time she managed to further refine her own expression and create a wide range of designs that are considered classics today. Towards the end of the 1960s, Nanna Ditzel met London-based furniture dealer Kurt Heide. They married in 1968, and Nanna Ditzel moved to London, where the couple created the international showroom Interspace, while Nanna Ditzel continued to nurture her own career on the side.
After Kurt Heide’s death in 1985, Nanna Ditzel moved back to Copenhagen, where she re-established a design studio in her own name. Numerous productive years followed this move, represented particularly by expressive designs that truly came to emphasise her reputation as one of Danish design’s great female contributors and which resulted in her receiving a string of design awards and praises. Throughout the 1990s, Nanna Ditzel worked with the same enthusiasm and curiosity that had characterised her younger years. She ran her design studio with the assistance of fellow design professionals as well as her eldest daughter, Dennie Ditzel, until her death in 2005.
Nanna Ditzel received several distinctions during her life. Among other things, she was appointed Honorary Designer by the Royal Society of Art in London, received the Order of the Dannebrog and was awarded the Danish Arts Foundation’s lifetime achievement grant in 1998. Her awards include the Danish Crafts Council’s Annual Prize and the Thorvald Bindesbøl Medal.
Our designers
Hans J. Wegner
Among Danish furniture designers, Hans J. Wegner is considered one of the most creative, innovative and prolific. Often referred to as the master of the chair, Wegner designed more than 500 chairs in his lifetime – many of them considered masterpieces.
Anker Bak
With an unconventional background and personal design approach, Anker Bak pushes conceptual and physical boundaries via quality materials, sublime craftsmanship and functionality. His designs make a difference in people’s lives and meet real needs.
Arne Jacobsen
One of Denmark's best-known and most respected architects, Arne Jacobsen has become synonymous with modernism throughout the world. His precise yet expressive aesthetic continues to serve as a source of inspiration for contemporary designers.
Bodil Kjær
Danish professor and architect Bodil Kjær has significantly contributed to the spread of Danish Modern design principles through her travels, knowledge gathering and promotion of the relationship between design and architecture.
Bonderup & Thorup
After graduating from the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts’ School of Architecture in Copenhagen in 1969, Claus Bonderup and Torsten Thorup began a collaboration that led them to join forces on design projects across the globe for more than 20 years.
Brad Ascalon
Brad Ascalon is an American designer born in 1977. He entered the art and design world at a young age. His grandfather, a sculptor and industrial designer, and his father, a renowned artist, encouraged a passion for design, craftsmanship and materials that would last.
Børge Mogensen
Børge Mogensen’s creative process produced long-lasting pieces with humans at the center. He worked primarily with wood and pioneered democratic design, becoming a highly-influential, post-war representative of Danish Modern.
EOOS
Austrian collaborative, EOOS, were established in 1995 by Martin Bergmann, Gernot Bohmann, and Harald Gründl. The trio study historical roots in a contemporary context and focus on myths, rituals and intuitive expressions, to create original connections.
Frits Henningsen
Frits Henningsen was an uncompromising designer known for his perfectionism and vibrant personality. He gave new expression to traditional designs and viewed quality craftsmanship as essential. Unlike most cabinetmakers, he always designed his own furniture pieces.
Kaare Klint
Kaare Klint is recognized as the father of modern Danish design and a renowned furniture designer, educator, and visionary. He insisted on clear, logical design, clean lines, the best materials, and superb craftsmanship, as seen in his iconic Safari Chair from 1933.
Larsen & Bender Madsen
Ejner Larsen and Aksel Bender Madsen designed around 300 works, including the Metropolitan Chair. While the chair was their favorite object, they also made other pieces from bedroom suites to bookshelves. The results were always simple and timeless.
Linie Design
Linie Design, a Danish design company, was founded in 1980 and since then has specialized in the development of handmade rugs in elegant designs and of the highest quality materials.
Mads Odgård
The dream of becoming a designer has lived in Mads Odgård for as long as he can remember, so when the time came, he left his birthplace, the Danish town of Kjellerup, and moved to Copenhagen to work in the creative business.
Mogens Lassen
Architect Mogens Lassen created works rooted in cubist architectural ideals inspired by Le Corbusier. Considered a pioneer of functionalism in Denmark, Lassen’s designs showcased his ability to express ideas through diverse materials.
Morten Gøttler
Born in Copenhagen, and originally trained in shipping, Morten Gøttler became a self-taught designer and architect recognized for his exceptional understanding of wood and strong belief that innovation is the foundation for successful design.
Ole Wanscher
Ole Wanscher was integral to the aesthetic and functionality of modern Danish design. Having studied under Kaare Klint, he helped shape Danish furniture design as a designer and as an educator when he took over Klint’s professorship at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts.
Poul Kjærholm
Poul Kjærholm mixed his strict, modern idiom with superior quality and materials rooted in Danish craftsmanship traditions. Despite his short career as a furniture designer, Kjærholm’s craftsmanship and clear expression resulted in timeless designs with a global influence.
Fabricius & Kastholm
The design duo specialised in furniture design and single-family houses, and their designs were characterised by minimalism, sophistication, functionality, quality and their eye for detail.
Rikke Frost
Danish designer Rikke Frost has always been curious about the combination of different craft traditions and types of material, a fact clearly reflected in her design portfolio where traditional and contemporary design is expressed in sofas, tables, chairs and lamps with an organic idiom.
Strand & Hvass
The Strand + Hvass duo is part of a new breed of Danish designers whose work continues in a direct line from their celebrated predecessors. With the Extend Table design, they infused the modern Danish furniture tradition with a bold new expression.
Tadao Ando
Japanese architect Tadao Ando bases his work on a design philosophy that unites Japanese design traditions with modern Western expression. Inspired by Le Corbusier, Ando’s style is minimalistic and innovative, with a focus on functionality.
Thomas Bo Kastholm
Thomas Bo Kastholm creates designs that unite diverse materials into compelling compositions with clear purpose. The TK8 Daybed, with its close ties to the core principles of classic, modern Danish design, exemplifies Kastholm’s ideals.
When you choose a product from Carl Hansen & Søn, you get more than just a piece of furniture. You will become part of a long and proud tradition of beautiful and distinctive craftsmanship where nothing is left to chance. We are the world’s largest manufacturer of furniture designed by Hans J. Wegner, and we also manufacture furniture created by renowned furniture designers such as Arne Jacobsen, Børge Mogensen, Ole Wanscher, Kaare Klint, Poul Kjærholm, Bodil Kjær, and Tadao Ando. Carl Hansen & Søn represents more than 100 years of Danish design history, and our furniture is sold worldwide.
*Indoor furniture 5 years warranty. Outdoor furniture 2 years warranty