Bjork Studio Buffets

Rare sideboard attributed to Eliel Saarinen (father of Eero Saarinen) designed before his immigration to the United States. In a style that we now refer to as "Art Deco," this style was considered the "National Romantic Style" in Finland essentially a twist on what became known worldwide as Art Deco with its strong vertical lines and medieval references. The workmanship of this cabinet and its materials is magnificent. Note the carefully matched panels of golden masurbjork (birch root), the intricate carvings of medieval knights (very similar to those guarding Saarinen's Helsinki Railway Station built in 1906) and the high contrast of golden and dark birch wood seen again in Saarinen's furniture designed in the United States in the late 1920s. While Saarinen's son Eero went on to become the more famous of the two, it was Eliel who could be considered the grandfather of Nordic Art Deco...