Kevin Lee- Week 4 Blog Post

            Danish modern furniture has been flourishing throughout the years. In Per H. Hansen’s “Networks, Narratives, and New Markets: The Rise and Decline of Danish Modern Furniture Design, 1930-1970,” Hansen discusses about how Danish modern furniture has flourished into what it is today and how it continues to flourish in other countries, such as Denmark and the U.S. Denmark’s furniture is now well-known throughout the world, especially in the U.S.; however, this was not always the case. Danish furniture was a small product of Denmark created from the self-expressions of the furniture architects and cabinetmakers. How did Danish furniture become such a huge hit around the world? The answer is simple: internationalization. Denmark decided to reach out to the U.S. and began to do business in the U.S. through Danish Modern. However, Danish design started to decline, and other countries began to produce their own “Danish Modern” design. Industries began to replicate Danish furniture without truly understanding the traditional values of the furniture. Also, Danish Modern itself was also a replica because the furniture from Danish Modern was not fully handcrafted. This shows that people have the tendency to replicate popular products because popular means that the product will sell well; however, this also takes away to original/traditional value of the product. Internationalization allowed products to be replicated and marketed in foreign countries. Denmark was able to show the world how wonderful Danish furniture was; however, the value behind their furniture began to decline as the years gone by.

Question: How much has Danish modern furniture changed from when it was first produced? Is there a way for replicated products to retain their original/traditional values?

Work Cited:

Hansen, Per H.. “Networks, Narratives, and New Markets: The Rise and Decline of Danish Modern Furniture Design, 1930-1970”. The Business History Review 80.3 (2006): 449–483. Web.

http://www.danishmafia.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/MID-CENTURY-DANISH-MODERN-ROSEWOOD-ERIK-BUCK-Chairs-8.jpg