Tekla and Artek celebrate architect and pioneering designer Aino Aalto with a limited collection released in the year of her 130th birthday. The collection comprises bedding featuring Aino Aalto’s Kirsikankukka pattern, highlighting Tekla and Artek’s shared commitment to timeless, high-quality pieces that centre “the beauty of the every day”.
Only in recent years has the depth and diversity of Aino Aalto’s talents received due recognition. As the artistic director and co-founder of Artek, she was vital in shaping its manifesto, and her creative vision was key to the development of its distinct style. Aino Aalto possessed an exceptional ability to synthesise form and function, giving her designs a wholeness from which the ideal of “the beauty of the every day”, or “kaunis arki” in Finnish, is derived – a quality still valued by Artek and the basis of its partnership with Tekla.
Her fascination with and approach to textiles added warmth to Artek’s projects, seen in Restaurant Savoy, Villa Mairea or the Aaltos’ private home. She worked across multiple disciplines, including glassware, ceramics, lighting and furniture. Her notebooks, drawings and photographs bear witness to her vital role at Artek.
In the 1930s, Aino Aalto met the Japanese ambassador to Finland and his wife, who gave Aalto a gift of silk fabric with a cherry blossom, or “kirsikankukka” in Finnish, motif. Inspired by the design, Aino created the Kirsikankukka pattern as an homage to Japanese art and design. The pattern was part of the standard collection of printed fabrics sold at Artek, used in interior design projects or for upholstering.
Tekla and Artek collaborate to celebrate pioneering architect and designer Aino Aalto for 3daysofdesign 2024 | Photography courtesy of Tekla
The campaign, styled with original Artek pieces at the Aaltos’ home in Helsinki, was skillfully captured by Norwegian photographer and long-time Tekla collaborator Ola Rindal. Introduced during 3daysofdesign in Copenhagen between 12-14 June, it was accompanied by an opening event and exhibition at Tekla Copenhagen and exhibitions at Artek’s Helsinki and Tokyo stores. Tekla Copenhagen was thoughtfully curated with archival pieces from Artek 2nd Cycle, further celebrating the iconic print and bedding beautifully displayed within the store.
Now with Tekla and Artek’s partnership, the Kirsikankukka print is once again available in home textiles. The limited bedding collection features a scaled version of the Kirsikankukka motif, printed across white, blue and pink colourways to complement Tekla’s bedding collection. The minimal, almost abstract suggestion of a flower, which differed from the more decorative depictions common at the time, complements Tekla’s clear design expression. Kids bedding is available for the first time, featuring the same graphic print and inspired by a baby bed made by Aino Aalto.
“In Aino Aalto’s quest to create beauty for the everyday, she viewed patterns and textiles as not just a decorative layer but an integral part of the home’s interior,” Artek managing director Marianne Goebl says. “We are thrilled that Tekla has respectfully applied her cherry blossom pattern onto the home textiles with which we are likely to spend the most time – comfortable, quality bedding.”
Tekla Copenhagen for 3daysofdesign | Photography courtesy of Tekla
Tekla Copenhagen
Location: Vognmagergade 7 1120 Copenhagen
Opening hours: Monday–Friday 11:00am-6:00pm Saturday 11:00am-5:00pm