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Maria Bruun at the Bruno Mathsson Residency

Walk into designer Maria Bruun’s world, and wood reveals itself as more than a material. Every curve and joint in her work speaks of both respect for the tree’s history and curiosity about what it might become. This delicate balance of function and poetry has established her as one of Denmark’s most distinctive contemporary furniture designers.

This year, the award-winning designer and Head of Design at Fredericia was granted a rare honour: the Bruno Mathsson Design Residency, one of the Nordic furniture industry’s most prestigious awards.  The residency celebrates outstanding designers while paying homage to the legendary Swedish architect and furniture designer Bruno Mathsson (1907–88). The jury recognised Bruun’s unique ability to merge functionality and poetry in a manner reminiscent of Mathsson’s approach.

Bruun spent the summer in Mathsson’s iconic 1955 house in Värnamo, immersing herself in his archive and the region’s rich furniture heritage. Surrounded by a home where every detail reflects Mathsson’s vision, she experienced how design, material, and space create a dialogue between past and present, insights that shaped her reflections throughout the residency.

In the following conversation, Bruun reflects on the residency as a source of inspiration, the shared DNA of Danish and Swedish design, and what it means to shape a legacy for the next generation.

“ It felt like stepping into a mind as much as a home. The architecture is entirely permeated by Mathsson’s vision; everything is intentional, choreographed, and deeply physical. ”

Maria Bruun


What was your very first impression when you stepped into the Mathsson house? 
MARIA: It felt like stepping into a mind as much as a home. The architecture is entirely permeated by Mathsson’s vision; everything is intentional, choreographed, and deeply physical. I have also previously had the privilege of experiencing a residency at Utzon’s Can Lis in Mallorca. In both houses, you encounter the same sensation of being enveloped by a designer’s total vision. At first, it can seem almost irrational, but gradually you understand how fully orchestrated it is.

Living inside his architecture, how did it change the way you understand Mathsson’s work and perhaps Scandinavian design history more broadly? 
MARIA: Living there gave me a bodily understanding of his thinking. His furniture and architecture are not merely seen, they are inhabited, felt and lived. Suddenly, the archive is not just books and sketches but a lived, spatial experience. It gave me a deeper historical understanding, which in turn sharpened how I see the present. To immerse oneself in such a space is to be reminded that design is always dialogue: between past and present, between human and material.

Did you develop any daily rituals that shaped how you engaged with the house while living there? 
MARIA: Yes, mornings by the large glass façade quickly became essential. Watching the light change, I realised that Mathsson had designed not just objects, but entire atmospheres. It was a small, quiet ritual, but it grounded me and made me feel the house almost as if it were alive. Over time, his intention became very clear: the way exterior and interior flow into each other, and how the different zones of the house are arranged to encourage either reflection, pause, or togetherness. The living room opens directly to the garden, while the reading chair is placed in the opposite way, with its back to the light and nature, but facing the great library wall. Those details made the house feel like it was guiding me gently into different ways of being.

Was there a particular object, detail, or corner in the house that sparked a new idea for you?
MARIA: What struck me most was the extraordinarily refined sense of dimension, so delicate it seemed to border on the unstable, almost trembling. It’s something rarely seen in today’s commercial furniture production. 
I was also struck by Mathsson’s work with modular elements, and how he managed to scale and adapt certain typologies across different pieces. In doing so, he created almost a complete furnishing system through repetition and iteration. This way of thinking resonates strongly with my own practice and became a significant source of inspiration.
If I were to highlight a favourite design in the house, it would be his book cradle from 1941. That small object encapsulates both the designer’s intent and a familiar everyday situation for the user, a beautiful reminder of the value of design in daily life.

Your work has often been described as balancing functionality and poetry. How do you see that in dialogue with Bruno Mathsson’s approach?
MARIA: I think Mathsson also sought that balance. His work is functional in the most human sense, but always with poetry embedded in the gesture of a curve, in the way a chair invites the body. I recognise in his work the same ambition I strive for: to let material and function carry emotional resonance.” 

Designer Børge Mogensen also explored wood across the Swedish-Danish border. How do you see Danish design traditions and Swedish production culture influencing each other today?
MARIA: There is a very rich dialogue there. Historically, Danes have been strong in conceptual design thinking, while Sweden has had remarkable production culture. Mogensen worked closely with Swedish manufacturers, and that cross-border collaboration enriched both traditions. I think we still need that exchange today, allowing the different traditions to continue inspiring new possibilities. “ 

Are there lessons in Mathsson’s way of working that feel especially urgent for Danish furniture design now?
MARIA: Yes, the lesson of integrity. Mathsson worked with a full vision, never compromising the connection between material, function, and space. In our time, where the pace is so fast, I think his insistence on coherence and on valuing the local craft and know-how feels urgent.”

Shaping spaces

Through a series of narratives, we explore inspiring spaces, delve into architectural history topics, explore the essence of good design, and celebrate the cultivation of unique atmospheres.

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