Interview with Barbro Tryberg Boberg

Posted by Tiffany on June 1st, 2010    1 Comment »

We caught up with this month’s featured designer, Barbro Tryberg Boberg at her home on the island of Gotland for an inside peek into what inspired some of our favorite designs, and what we can expect from her next!

Barbro on the steps of her Gotland home. photos: barbro tryberg boberg

FS: How did your design company, Formverket, get its start?

BTB: My big opportunity came as my three-year program in graphic design came to an end. Stockholm was celebrating its 750-year jubilee and there was a design contest for products celebrating the city. I collaborated with a classmate, Martin Norrlind, and two of our prototypes made it into production. One was a tray with a black and white pattern based on Sergels Torg, a prominent central square in Stockholm. The other was a set of magnets featuring the names of Stockholm T-bana, or subway, stations. The orders came in quickly so I formed Formverket in 2002.

Barbro’s PLATTAN tray inspired by the black and white triangles of Sergels Torg, and Stockholm T-bana magnets. photos: barbro tryberg boberg and jonas bergsten

FS: Is there a look and feel you tend to gravitate toward in your designs?

BTB: I love the design language of the 50s, 60s and some of the 70s. That’s where I draw inspiration for my design.

FS: Where do you find the best inspiration?

BTB: I go to antique shops and flea markets. I also do a lot of looking online.

Barbro’s second space – her studio in Stockholm for some city buzz. photos: www.fromsthlm.com

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FS: Is there a story behind the ANNA and DORIS patterns on your cutting boards?

BTB: My friend Anna Voltaire brought me an old coffee mug that she’d bought at a flea market on the island of Gotland. She thought it suited me. Later that evening a pattern inspired by the mug came to me, so of course it got named ANNA. On the backside, the DORIS pattern is a green variation of my gray EVERYDAY pattern, which in turn is inspired by the simple gray and white wallpaper that hung in all Swedes’ homes in the 60s.

FS: Your cutting boards have a distinctive long and narrow shape, as if it’s purpose made. What purpose did you have in mind?

BTB: The shape is also from the past, of course! This is the perfect shape for the traditional and popular Skogaholm bread loaves.

FS: The pattern on the 55/EVERYDAY trivet is striking and timeless. Was that also inspired by the past?

BTB: Yes, it’s a combination of 60s graphics, faded wallpaper from the era, and formica tabletops. There was a formica trivet with a stand of black and white squares that inspired me too.

Barbro’s double-sided 55 / EVERYDAY trivet, perfect for hot tabletop dishes and smaller bites alike. photos: www.fromsthlm.com

FS: And the ALICE apple pattern seems pretty self-evident, but I’d love to hear your thoughts!

BTB: The apple has such a great shape! And such beautiful names, so on some of the other ALICE pieces I included the names of 100 Swedish apple varieties too. Cox Pomona, Transparant Blance, Alice, Signe Tillish…

A glimpse of many of Barbro’s different designs through the Formverket window. photo: www.fromsthlm.com

FS: You always have an exciting collaboration in the works. I know that lately you’ve been doing a lot of work with another of our featured designers, Maria Holmer Dahlgren, for the new company you’ve formed together, BoM United. Any fun new projects we can expect to see down the line?

BTB: Oh yes, Maria and I have been commissioned now to draw children’s furniture, so that will be very cool!

FS: Very cool indeed!

Barbro and Maria having fun in the Formverket studio with their new matching slippers. Hard to imagine a more perfect pairing ;-) photo: www. fromsthlm.com

(Thanks Barbro!)

More of Barbro’s designs are available in the shop this month only!

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