Harri Koskinen

Harri Koskinen (1970–) is regarded as one of the most significant contemporary Finnish designers. A prolific and versatile practitioner, the early phase of his career is closely associated with a specific material—glass—which is the undisputed protagonist of what remains his best-known work, the Block lamp, designed in 1997 for the brand Design House Stockholm. Now part of the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the lamp consists of a square block of transparent glass containing a cavity shaped like a traditional light bulb. Many of his other creations are the result of collaborations with Finland’s most important glass manufacturer, Iittala, for which he has also served as art director since 2011. His reputation, however, extends well beyond national borders: in 2004 he was awarded Italy’s Compasso d’Oro for the Muu chair, designed for the brand Montina (now reissued by BBB). Koskinen has collaborated extensively with design brands, both Scandinavian—such as Muuto, Woodnotes, Nikari, and Asplund—and international companies, including Italy’s Billiani, Germany’s Thonet, and Bosnia’s Zanat.