Louis Vuitton & Paavo Tynell
Our next auction on Saturday the 7th of March and Sunday the 8th of March is filled with a lot of good Items, but there are a few Items or in this case designers that outshine the others.
Mr. Paavo Tynell
Biography
Mr. Paavo Tynell (1890-1973) was a Finnish designer. He began his studies at the packing manufacturer G. W. Sohlberg to become a Tinsmith. He then continued to study at nights at what was then known as the Taideteollisuuden keskuskoulu (free translation: Central school of Art industry). That school is now called Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture. He was thought to be so talented that it didn’t take long for him to become a teacher in his school instead of a student.
Tynell started a new job at Taidetakomo Koru, where he made his first brass lamp. Tynell was also one of the founders (1918) of Oy Taito Ab. He was the CEO and chief designer of Oy Taito Ab until 1953. Taito was known for its famous designers that included names like Alvar Aalto and Kaj Franck. After 1953 Oy Taito Ab was sold to Idman. After this Tynell designed lightings for the two American companies Litecraft ja Lightolier.
In addition to his mass produced lighting designs, Tynell also designed unique lightings to many Public spaces. The list includes hotels such as Hotel Aulanko and Hotel Vaakuna, Stockman, Café Ekberg, train station in Tampere, bus station ln Turku, Pörssitalo’s (Stock house) restaurant Adlon, the Finnish Parliment house and the Glass Palace in Helsinki. Whilst working with the two American companies Lightolier and Litecraft, Tynell also designed lightings to wealthy private home owners.
His Designs
Tynell lightings are easily recognizable due to his unique style and preference of using brass as his choice of material. Typical characteristics to Tynell lightings are:
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Brass made
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Ornamented yet sleek
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Inspired by nature
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Perforated (pierced brass)
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Lift mechanism included
Tynell is most known for his design called Lumihiutale (Snowflake also in the picture above) that was manufactured by Taito. His designs were often inspired by nature and this can be seen in his many flower themed light fixtures.
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Pörssitalo’s (Stock house) restaurant Adlon and the unique Tynell chandaliers
The Stock house in Helsinki Finland was designed in 1910. The Stock house’s Grand Restaurant Börs became a well known and popular restaurant and night club. In 1938 The Grand Restaurant Börs was refurnished and renamed as the Adlon. Tynell had a part in the redesigning of the restaurant, as he designed most of its light fixtures.
Items 501 and 502 (picture below) at HELANDER’S March auction, were originally designed for this refurnished high end restaurant. Tynell also designed matching wall lamps for the space. These wall lamps still hang at the walls of The Adlon (Nowadays called Restaurant Börs).
Items 501 and 502, Chandaliers designed by Paavo Tynell for the Restaurant Adlon in Helsinki.
Mr. Louis Vuitton
Biography
Mr. Louis Vuitton (1821–1892) was a French businessman and a designer. He was born to a working-class family in rural France. Unfortunately his parents past away, when he was just a child. Vuitton left his home town at the age of 13, he headed towards Paris. Mr. Vuitton’s journey by foot to Paris took him two years and several odd jobs.
Vuitton landed a j
ob as an apprentice in the workshop of a successful box-maker and packer named Monsieur Marechal. This was his first step towards building what is now known as a global, high end fashion brand. As well as Mr. Tynell (read the first part of this blog-post) Vuitton was also discovered as a very talented young man. It did not take him too long to become known amongst Paris’s fashionable class as one of the city’s premier practitioners of his new craft.
In 1854, Vuitton married 17-year-old Clemence-Emilie Parriaux. Shortly after he left Marechal’s shop and opened his own box-making and packing workshop in Paris. Outside the shop a sign hung reading “Securely packs the most fragile objects. Specializing in packing fashions.
Perhaps the most interesting part of Mr. Louis Vuitton’s vivid and remarkable history happened after he had already become a major influence in his trade. He got hired by Napoleon Bonaparte’s wife, Spanish countess Eugenie de Montij (who then later became also the Empress of France). At the time Napoleon was assuming the title of Emperor of the French and in 1852 he got it. This was more than a lucky strike in Mr. Vuitton’s life. He now had access to the crème de la crème of both Spanish and French Royals and elite. Mr. Louis Vuitton was set for life and he continued to work for this clientel for the rest of his career.
He continued to work until his death at the age of 70 on 27 February 1892. After his death, his son Georges Vuitton took over control of the company and started the family business on its path of global expansion.
His Legacy and the House of Louis Vuitton
I named this part as “His Legacy” instead of His design, as most (not all) of the trademark qualities we recognize today about the House of Louis Vuitton, were made after his deth in 1892.
In 1858, Vuitton introduced his revolutionary stackable rectangular shaped trunks to a market that only had rounded tops. This demand spurred his expansion into a larger workshop outside of Paris. The factory also became the Vuitton family home, when Louis Vuitton built two villas in the grounds – one for himself and one for his son Georges.
The famous Monogram canvas was first introduced in 1896 then, in 1914, Vuitton opened the then biggest luggage store in the world on the Champs-Elysées. And it could supply its customers with anything they could possibly need for their travels, from intricate vanity cases or trunks for polo mallets to the Secretary desk, complete with filing cabinets, collapsible desk and a typewriter. But if you preferred totravel light, in 1930, Louis Vuitton introduced the Keepall, the prototype of the modern holdall, which is still in production today.
The House of Louis Vuitton supplyes anything and everything their customers desire.
By the time the company reached its centenary in 1954, the Vuitton monogram was one of the most recognisable logos in the world. Salvador Dalí even took inspiration from it to create his own “Dalígram”. Loyal customers included Georges Simenon, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Christian Dior, Hubert de Givenchy, Charles Aznavour, Luchino Visconti, Kirk Douglas… the list goes on. In 1959, the company introduced the supple monogrammed canvas coated in PVC that became its trademark.
Still a family firm, in 1984 the company was listed on the Paris Bourse. It already owned other luxury brands such as Givenchy, Veuve Clicquot and Loewe, and three years later it merged with the drinks giant Moët Hennessy to create what was to become the world’s biggest luxury conglomerate, LVMH.
The Vernis line
In 1997 Louis Vuitton made Marc Jacobs alongside Jae its Art Directors. In March of the following year, they designed and introduced the the Monogram Vernis line. Since then the House of Louis Vuitton has introduced many variations of Louis Vuitton Vernis bags.
Vernis bags from left to right: Items 806, 850 and 833 were auctioned at Helander’s annual Women’s Dauy Auction on the 8th of March 2015.
To check out the full auction catalogue and the designer bags up for auction, click here!
To read a short version of the history of the House of Louis Vuitton, click here!
Text: Jenny Sirén
Pictures: Auction House Helander and Wikipedia (pictures of the designers)
Sources: biography.com , www.wikipedia.com , www.gq-magazine.co.uk, eu.louisvuitton.com , www.thinglink.com , www.porssitieto.fi , www.porssitalo.fi , www.wikifashion.com
