Aalto stool 60, Tom Dixon

Alvar Aalto's three-legged Stool 60 turned 80 years old in 2013. To celebrate, Artek updated the iconic stool with a few new designs. This fluorescent orange stool was designed by Tom Dixon. Dixon himself described the stool he designed as follows: “The fluorescent orange that I chose for Aalto Stool 60 is the simplest way to draw attention to this ultra-simple piece of classic minimalism which is well known that often people don't notice it anymore. This high-visibility paint is used most often in an emergency, rescue, and warning situations and rarely in the interior design space. Aalto was a great lover of bright colours, and I can imagine that he too might have been fascinated by these extreme hues.”

Alvar Aalto

Tom Dixon

Artek was founded in 1935 by four young idealists – Alvar and Aino Aalto, Nils-Gustav Hahl and Maire Gullichsen published a design manifesto inspired by functionalism, stating that Artek’s aim was “to sell furniture and to promote modern culture of habitation by exhibitions and other means”. Since its foundation, Artek has played in the intersection of design, architecture, and art, making Finnish design and Alvar Aalto's furniture known all over the world.