While most new nordic brands go for affordability, flat-packing and on-line availability, Swedish Snickeriet has gone the other way with master carpentry, bespoke production and an impossible attention to details. Their latest piece, Korint, is a testament to this approach.
Established in 2011 by designers Karl Johan Herling, formerly of Acne Studios and Studio Dror, Karin Wallenbeck, Konstfack graduate, and cabinetmakers Gunnar Dahl and Karolina Stenfelt, Snickeriet quickly won wide acclaim for its infusion of contemporary thought and execution into traditional cabinetmaking. The initial collection included the cabinets Frank and Havet. Frank is an acrylic glass cabinet on a maple wood frame, offering a total transparency of its own construction and details. Havet (trans. the sea) has a hand chiseled and lacquered surface, evoking the sight of a nocturnal sea.
Unfortunately we haven’t yet had a chance to see Snickeriet’s latest piece, Korint. This cabinet is also based on a decorative concept, but unlike the random surface of Havet, Korint has a rigid, symmetrical decor. The geometric pattern defines Korint’s monolithic appearance, connoting decorative elements of antiquity as well as a modernist, industrial decorative order. In Korint, Snickeriet achieves a compelling tension between the strict visual impression and the craft of cabinetmaking. Rather than elaborate patterns or elements, the craftsmanship in this cabinet is manifest in the perfectly fitted repetition of the pattern and in the concealed details.