In pursuit
of the graphically simple.
After sparking an interest in product design when studying graphics, print, and typography, Jonas Wagell developed a visual language that’s at once simplistic and vividly expressive. The Stockholm native’s greatest hits—such as the curvy Julep sofa for Tacchini, best-selling JWDA lamps for Menu, and the newly launched Panorama modular sofa for Wendelbo—all feature soft, friendly shapes that appeal to modern sensibilities while eschewing fads and trends.
By Ryan Waddoups, Surface Magazine
Jonas Wagell is a Swedish architect and designer born in 1973. The studio JWDA was founded in 2008 and is today located in a converted car repair shop in central Stockholm, but collaborations span far from Scandinavia to Italy, Asia and North America.
Wagell’s architecture work is perhaps most known for the innovative prefab house concept Mini House (2007-2012), early recognized by Wallpaper* Magazine which named him one of the “world’s 50 hottest young architects” shortly after graduation from Konstfack in Stockholm in 2007. Today the work is primarily focused on product and furniture design, but on occasion the studio has also consulted with art and design direction.
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Contact
Jonas Wagell AB
Rörstrandsgatan 44
113 40 Stockholm
Sweden
info@jonaswagell.se
The Swedish native’s design has been described as minimal with soft and friendly shapes. At an early age Jonas was introduced to design through an interest in graphics, print and typography and perhaps this has influenced today’s work with simplistic and clear, but expressive design language.
Today the studio’s design collaborations include Danish companies such as Menu, Normann Copenhagen, Paper Collective and most recently Wendelbo, but also Tacchini in Italy, Ercol and Allermuir in United Kingdom, Design Within Reach in North America and Ago Lighting in South Korea, to name a few.
Portrait photos by Mario Depicolzuane for MENU.
Jonas Wagell is trained in graphics, marketing and communication, furniture design and interior architecture at schools including Konstfack University College of Arts and Crafts and Berghs School of Communication in Stockholm, as well as Parsons School of Design in New York City. Wagell has a former career in strategic project management and communication.
Although the studio’s focus today is primarily on design rather than architecture, the passion remains multi-disciplinary and the approach diverse – from furniture and lighting to tableware and consumer accessories – as well as the occasional artwork.
Jonas Wagell Design & Architecture / JWDA
Swedish architect and designer Jonas Wagell is widely revered for his modern product and furniture design comprising soft, minimalist shapes with a welcoming expression. The Stockholm-based studio’s award-winning work combines graphic simplicity and playfulness to create pieces that typify modern-day life.
Words by Rachel Morgan for Menu A/S
→ Read more about the studio!