Björn Dahlström – Informal Glass Collection Orrefors

Björn Dahlström Designs Informal Glass Collection for Orrefors

Swedish designer Björn Dahlström (born in Stockholm in 1957) began his career in graphic design, which remains visible in his approach to both two- and three-dimensional industrial design work.

His breakthrough came with the BD1 lounge chair for CBI Design Sweden, named Furniture of the Year in 1995.

Over the course of his career he has designed rugs, bicycles, toys, furniture, and household products for companies including CBI, Atlas Copco, Marimekko, Magis, and Kasthall. His work is represented in the collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, Nationalmuseum in Stockholm, and the Centre national des arts plastiques in Paris.

In his first collaboration with the Swedish glassmaker Orrefors, Dahlström designed the Informal collection — a modern series of functional glasses that work equally well in formal and everyday contexts. The collection innovatively combines the high-quality glass tradition of Sweden with more relaxed contemporary habits. Each piece is designed to be comfortable to hold and to bring out the nuances of fragrance and flavour.

Informal consists of four wine glasses, two tumblers, a champagne glass, and a carafe available in different colour variations. The carafe’s bowl is multi-functional: it serves as a coaster or as a small serving dish for appetizers. The collection was first launched in 2021 and was subsequently nominated for the Swedish Design Prize in the category Identity Product Design, where it earned second place.

Orrefors has manufactured glass in Småland, Sweden, since 1898. The glassworks has a long tradition of collaborating with notable designers, including Gunnar Cyrén, Ingegerd Råman, Erika Lagerbielke, Lena Bergström, and more recently Andreas Engesvik and Claesson Koivisto Rune.

Dahlström was awarded the Torsten & Wanja Söderberg Prize in 2001, one of the most prestigious design awards in the Nordic region.