Carl Gustav Magnusson (born March 8, 1940) is an industrial designer, inventor, design juror and lecturer.

Life and career

Carl Gustav Magnusson was born in

Malmö Malmö is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, sixth-largest city in Nordic countries, the Nordic region. Located on ...

, Sweden, and grew up in

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, and

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. He studied engineering and architecture at the

University of Idaho The University of Idaho (U of I, or UIdaho) is a public land-grant research university in Moscow, Idaho, United States. Established in 1889 and opened three years later, it was the state's sole university for 71 years, until 1963. The un ...

and architecture at the

Chalmers Institute of Technology Chalmers University of Technology (, commonly referred to as Chalmers) is a private research university located in Gothenburg, Sweden. Chalmers focuses on engineering and science, but more broadly it also conducts research and offers education ...

Gothenburg Gothenburg ( ; ) is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, second-largest city in Sweden, after the capital Stockholm, and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated by the Kattegat on the west coast of Sweden, it is the gub ...

, Sweden. In 1966 he joined the Office of

Charles and Ray Eames Charles Eames ( Charles Eames, Jr) and Ray Eames ( Ray-Bernice Eames) were an American married couple of industrial designers who made significant historical contributions to the development of modern architecture and furniture through the work of ...

in California and shortly thereafter opened his own design practice in Rudolf Schindler's studio on Kings Road in

West Hollywood, California West Hollywood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Incorporated in 1984, it is home to the Sunset Strip. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. Census, its population was 35,757. History Most historical writing ...

Knoll

In 1976 Magnusson joined

Knoll In geography, knoll is another term for a knowe or hillock, a small, low, round natural hill or mound. Knoll may also refer to: Places * Knoll Camp, site of an Iron Age hill fort Hampshire, England, United Kingdom * Knoll Lake, Leonard Canyon, ...

as Director of Graphics and Showroom Design and was named Director of Design for Europe shortly thereafter. He designed Knoll showrooms in London, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Zurich, Florence, Rome, Amsterdam and Turin. In 1993, he was named Senior Vice President, Director of Design Worldwide, and, in 2003, Executive Vice President, Director of Design.profile
knoll.com As a design director, Magnusson widened the range of designers that Knoll commissioned work from—recruiting both established and younger talents. In the late 1980s, Magnusson rekindled Knoll's relationship with renowned designer and esthetic theorist, Ettore Sottass, which led to numerous iconic pieces, including the Mandarin chair and the Spyder table. Sculptor

Maya Lin Maya Ying Lin (Chinese: 林瓔; born October 5, 1959) is an American architect, designer and sculptor. Born in Athens, Ohio to Chinese immigrants, she attended Yale University to study architecture. In 1981, while still an undergraduate at Yal ...

collaborated closely with Magnusson in 1998 to create Knoll's Maya Lin line of furniture that Knoll continues to sell today. Similarly, architect

Frank Gehry Frank Owen Gehry ( ; ; born February 28, 1929) is a Canadian-American architect and designer. A number of his buildings, including his private residence in Santa Monica, California, have become attractions. Gehry rose to prominence in th ...

worked with Knoll to create Knoll's Fog Collection. Magnusson continued to contribute his own designs to Knoll as well, including the Magnusson Desk (1993), the RPM Chair (1997), and modular office systems—Dividends, with David Noel; Currents, with Robert Reuter; and Autostrada, with Robert Reuter and Charlie Rozier. During his 29 years at Knoll, Magnusson was also active as a curator and educator. He established the Knoll Design Symposium at Cranbrook Academy of the Arts in Bloomfield Hills and in 1997; he co-founded with Albert Pfeiffer (AIA
The Knoll Museum
ref name="Hofstra, 2008" /> in

East Greenville, Pennsylvania East Greenville is a borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,166 at the 2020. It is one of a strip of small towns that run together along Route 29, including Red Hill, Pennsburg, and East Greenville. T ...

. With over 60 years of Knoll furniture designs, the museum is considered among the most comprehensive display of archival collector items by any furniture manufacturer.

Ongoing activities

Since retiring from Knoll in 2005, Magnusson has remained active as a designer, consultant and lecturer. Today he continues in the fields of office design and environment, as well as lighting systems, automobiles, and household appliances, furnishings an
textiles
In addition to Knoll, he has designed products for Teknion, Stegner Engineering, Arexit, Momentum Textiles, Allseating, and the MoMA Design Store (co-designed with his wife, architect Emanuela Frattini Magnusson).Official website for C.G. Magnusson
/ref> In 2005, Magnusson founde
CGM Design
which serves furniture and automotive manufacturers in product development and design strategy. He has lectured on design matters for

BMW Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, trading as BMW Group (commonly abbreviated to BMW (), sometimes anglicised as Bavarian Motor Works), is a German multinational manufacturer of vehicles and motorcycles headquartered in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Th ...

, Knoll
Maharam

AIA AIA or A.I.A. or Aia may refer to: Aia * Aia, a small town in the province of Gipuzkoa, Spain * Peñas de Aya, small mountain range in Oiartzun, Gipuzkoa * Aia, current Kutaisi, ancient capital of Colchis * Aia, another name for Aea (Malis), an ...

an
WaterworksIIDA
SCAD among others, is a frequent jury member for design competitions internationally and expert witness on design matters. In 2012, the design industry publication ''Contract'' named him the 2012 design "legend" of the year, saying of him: "he is an industrial designer, as well as a curator, lecturer, mentor, inventor, organizer, talent scout, and visionary. And his influence has spread out in multiple directions around the globe."

Design Awards

Architizer
2017 – Ivy Umbrella Stand (created 1990 with Emanuela Frattini Magnusson
Contract Magazine Legend Award, 2012
* MAST Monitor Arm System for Teknion: Chicago Atheneum Good Design AwardIDEA/IDSA Award (March 7, 2012)
/ref>

iF Product Design Award The iF Product Design Award was introduced in 1954 and is annually conferred by the iF International Forum Design. The award, which spans multiple disciplines, has more than 5,500 entries from around 59 nations every year. History The iF Indus ...

Conflux Lighting: Green Good Design Award
br>IIDEX Gold Award,
Neocon Gold Award for Lighting
iF Design Award,Building Magazine: Grand Award for Innovation; Innovation Award Lighting for energy efficiency

Synapse Chair: NeoCon Gold
b
Green Star Sustainability Award
b
Good Design Award
b
Bloom Award for Furniture
( ASID and ''Interiors and Sources'')
IIDEX/Neocon Marketplace: Innovation Gold Award
b
the iF Design Award
* Pacific Design Center Lifetime Achievement Award *The GOOD DESIGN Award 2017 for Lyss, designed for Allseating *Interior Design Best of Year Awards – Merit Honoree for Lyss, designed for Allseating *IDEA Awards, Bronze for Lyss, designed for Allseating *The GOOD DESIGN Award 2018 for Zinc, designed for Allseating

Quotes

"Everything that I do has a certain mechanical logic to it, and follows my definition of design—which is function with cultural content."

"Cultural content imbues the item with our history, our inescapable style of our time and its values. Yet, a designed object must meet the functional and manufacturing cost requirements that allow customers to afford it. If the price is prohibitive then what function does it perform?"
contractdesign.com

Notes

External links

Designers & Books

Contract Legend Award, 2012

* ttp://vimeo.com/11322201 Classic Driver, 2010* ttp://vimeo.com/4525385 Classic Driver, 2009 {{DEFAULTSORT:Magnusson, Carl Living people 1940 births Swedish designers Chalmers University of Technology alumni Swedish emigrants to Canada University of Idaho alumni