Buzz: The SAS Royal Hotel Turns 50

Filed under: Famous Homes, Design, etc, Architecture, News & Trends, Cool Homes

The birthplace of Arne Jacobsen's 'Egg' and 'Swan' chairs celebrates a half century.

Today, Arne Jacobsen is a design legend. But in 1956, he was a 54-year-old architect and designer about to embark on a project that would change his career: A new hotel for the Scandinavian Airline Systems (SAS), an airline company based in Copenhagan. The project, which was completed in 1960, has been called the "first designer hotel".

Fifty years later, Jacobsen's design for the SAS Royal Hotel (now known as the Radisson Blu Royal Hotel) still feels fresh.

Some of the furnishings designed for the hotel, including the Egg chair (seen above in the lobby) and Jacobsen's Swan chair, have gone on to become iconic examples of mid-century design (currently manufactured by Fritz Hansen). But the rest of the pieces never went into production so it takes a visit to the hotel to get a true taste of Jacobsen's soup-to-nuts designs -- from the building itself (he was, first and foremost, an architect), right down to the ashtrays in the rooms.

While most of the hotel has been brought up to the modern standards, Room 606 has been left just as Jacobsen designed it in 1960 -- Egg Chair and all. You may recognize it from countless photo shoots that have taken place in the room over the years.

The updated rooms also feature Jacobsen's designs, along with contemporary pieces that are in the spirit of his signature, mid-century style.

Interior Design reports that a replica of famed Room 606 was created in Copenhagen's Kastrup Airport for the SAS Business Lounge thanks to a collaboration with Fritz Hansen.

Both the replica and the original versions of Room 606 show why Jacobsen is remembered and celebrated today, 50 years after the SAS Royal Hotel opened its doors.

Another tribute to Jacobsen -- his egg chair got a makeover!

 

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments