Gunnel Nyman (September 19, 1909 – October 7, 1948) was a Finnish glass and metal artist, and one of the founders of modern Finnish glass design. She was also a proponent of early mass-produced glassware. Nyman's glassware is exhibited in museums internationally.
Born Gunnel Anita Gustafsson in Turku in 1909, she moved to Helsinki with her family in 1922. She married Gunnar Nyman in 1936.
Nyman studied furniture design at the
Taideteollinen Korkeakoulu (Central School of the Industrial Arts) in Helsinki, under
Arttu Brummer and worked initially in the functionalist style.
Trained as a furniture designer, Nyman also created metalwork for ecclesiastical use as well as lighting, most notably for Helsinki's Swedish Theater, which she designed in collaboration with the
Oy Taito AB metalsmiths.
During the post-war era she transitioned to glassware and collaborated or worked on commission with various glassworks including
Riihimäki
Riihimäki (; ) is a town and municipality in the south of Finland, about north of Helsinki and southeast of Tampere. An important railway junction is located in Riihimäki, since railway tracks from Riihimäki lead to Helsinki, Tampere and La ...
,
Karhula-Iittala and
Nuutajärvi.
Her work features organic lines and focuses on the characteristics of glass itself.
Nyman died in 1948 after a long illness. In 1951, she was posthumously awarded the gold medal at the
Milan Triennial
The ''Milan Triennial'' (Triennale di Milano) is an art and design exhibition that takes place every three years at the Triennale di Milano Museum in Milan, Italy.
History
The exhibition was originally established in 1923 as a biennial architect ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nyman, Gunnel
1909 births
1948 deaths
20th-century Finnish women artists
Women glass artists
Artists from Helsinki
Finnish women artists
Finnish industrial designers