Preben Juul Fabricius (1931–1984) was a Danish furniture designer who worked together with

Jørgen Kastholm Jørgen Kastholm (1931–2007) was a Danish furniture designer, interior designer, and professor. He collaborated extensively with Preben Fabricius between 1961 and 1968. Furniture designed by Kastholm has appeared in several films and series, inc ...

. During the 1960s, the pair designed a wide range of pieces for the German Alfred Kill who had a furniture factory in

Fellbach Fellbach () is a town on the north-east edge of Stuttgart in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. With a population of approximately 45.430 is the second largest town in the District Rems-Murr-Kreis. The area of the town is . Fellbach was first mention ...

near

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...

Biography

Fabricius was trained as a cabinetmaker by Niels Vodder before attending the School for Interior Design where he studied under

Finn Juhl Finn Juhl (30 January 1912 – 17 May 1989) was a Denmark, Danish architect, interior design, interior and industrial designer, most known for his furniture design. He was one of the leading figures in the creation of Danish design in the 1940s an ...

. It was there that he met the blacksmith

. They had a common approach to furniture design, never wanting to compromise on aesthetics. In 1961, the pair set up a design studio in a

Gentofte Gentofte () is a district of Gentofte Municipality in the northern suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark. Major landmarks include Gentofte Town Hall, Gentofte Hospital and Gentofte Church. Gentofte Lake with surrounding parkland and nature reserves form ...

cellar without any firm arrangements with manufacturers. In 1965, they exhibited at the furniture fair in

Fredericia Fredericia () is a town located in Fredericia Municipality in the southeastern part of the Jutland peninsula in Denmark. The city is part of the Triangle Region Denmark, Triangle Region, which includes the neighbouring cities of Kolding and Vej ...

where the German furniture manufacturer Alfred Kill noticed their work. Kill had a reputation for high quality but initially Favricius and Kastholm were not keen to design furniture for factory production. Only when Kill offered them DM 2,500 a month each, with no preconditions, did they agree to work for him.Dorte Mosbæk
"

og Preben Fabricius", ''BoBedre''. Retrieved 13 November 2011. They travelled to

with their first designs for production in Kill's factory in nearby Fellbach. Their international breakthrough came at the Cologne Fair in 1966 when they exhibited a whole series of office and home furniture leading to orders from ten large furniture concerns. Their minimalistic designs, both attractive and comfortable, were usually in steel and leather. The Tulip Chair, the Grasshopper Chair and the Scimitar Chair are among their most successful works.Signe Brogaard, "Preben Fabricius og Jørgen Kastholm"
''Bo Bedre''. Retrieved 13 November 2011. The pieces of furniture they produced during their seven-year period of cooperation from 1961 to 1968 were so distinctive that many are still produced today as classics.Preben Fabricius "Preben Juul Fabricius: Møbelarkitekt"
''Gravsted.dk''. Retrieved 13 November 2011. As a result of disagreements, the pair decided to terminate their cooperation in 1968. Fabricius and Kastholm was awarded the Illum Prize (1968) and the first German ''Gute Form'' prize for their FK Tulip chair (1969)."Preben Fabricius"
''FurnitureDesign24.com''. Retrieved 13 November 2011. Fabricius died in March 1984 when he was only 52.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fabricius, Preben Danish furniture designers 1931 births 1984 deaths People from Odense Danish modern

Biography

See also

References