“I’ve been collecting Arne Jacobsen for many, many, many years—in fact, the Series 7 was my first chair in my very first apartment,” says Carla Sozzani, the Italian editor who founded 10 Corso Como and otherwise needs no introduction. It was this passion for Jacobsen’s work, along with that keen eye for aesthetics she’s honed over a five-decade career in the worlds of publishing, art, and fashion, that has perhaps predestined Sozzani’s latest endeavor: a collaboration with Fritz Hansen to reinvigorate three of Jacobsen’s beloved designs.
Dubbed “A Sense of Color”, the new collection, co-created and curated by Sozzani, offers designers and collectors a unique opportunity to add personal touches to the Ant, Grand Prix, and Series 7 stackable chairs. Out of the hundreds of vibrant colors Sozzani started with, the 16 tightly curated shell colors and seven new base colors that she selected to adorn the chairs effortlessly complement each other, adding a welcome element of mix-and-match to these unimpeachable icons of Danish Modernism.
“What I love about this collection is that the colors fit so squarely within Fritz Hansen’s language, yet they do feel distinct,” continues Sozzani. She bought her first Series 7 chair in the 1970s, when Verner Panton’s penchant for experimental colors and organic forms was heralding an exciting new era in design. In contrast, Sozzani’s selections all have a little bit of black mixed in, making them darker but no less eye-catching. So far, the new colors have delighted creatives and designers the world over. Kengo Kuma likened the soft “Deep Clay” color to feelings of peace and security, while Scandinavian architect Sarah Emilie Müllertz drew parallels between “Lavender Blue” and the coastlines of Denmark. For Sozzani, her favorite is the “Paradise Orange”—a classic burnt sienna with a touch of orange thrown in.
