Jacob Jensen
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Jacob Jensen - born 1926 in Copenhagen, Denmark - Is a well established name in the field of industrial design.
Jacob Jensen is the son of an upholsterer, Alfred Jensen, and his wife Olga Jensen. He grew up in the rough environment of the Vesterbro area, left school after the seventh grade, completed his training as an upholsterer in 1946, and went on the road for some months, as was the custom for newly trained artisans. His father established his own furniture workshop in 1947 in Gartnergade, Copenhagen where Jacob joined him. Here he developed, furniture including, a sofa bed and began to design chairs. He was discovered by chance and was encouraged to attend the School of Arts and Craft.
He was accepted at the Copenhagen School of Arts and Craft in the furniture division in 1948 as the only upholsterer among 11 furniture makers, one of which was Poul Kjærholm. The school was a breeding ground for the many furniture designers, which have made Danish furniture world famous. The international breakthrough of Danish Design occurred during the very years that Jacob Jensen attended the school. The training was based on the design methods of Kaare Klint and was taught by people such as Hans J. Wegner and Jørn Utzon. Utzon initiated a course in a brand new subject called ”Industrial Design”, which Jacob Jensen inspiredly joined and finished as the only student. Jacob Jensen graduated from the School of Arts and Craft in 1952.
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[edit] The first industrial design studio in Scandinavia
In 1952 there was only one studio in Scandinavia, which employed industrial designers. This was Bernadotte & Bjørn in Copenhagen, with Sigvard Bernadotte, son of the Swedish King, as one of the partners. Jacob Jensen worked here from 1952 to 1958, as studio chief from 1954. Here he learned about the growing market from the bottom up. According to Bernadotte, it was Jacob Jensen who in 1955 designed the company’s most successful product, the Margrethe bowl, which is still in production.
In 1956, Jacob Jensen went to the USA to work for a number of leading studios. The contacts were established by Bernadotte and included, the design star Raymond Loewy in New York and the design strategy studio Latham, Tyler & Jensen (LTJ) in Chicago. During his time in Chicago, Jacob Jensen was particularly inspired by Richard Latham. Latham thought in terms of survival strategies, incorporating both the market oriented American tradition and the idealistic Bauhaus inspired tradition. In 1960, Jacob became a partner in LTJ and managed the company’s European interests until 1975.
[edit] Jacob Jensen Design
In 1958, Jacob Jensen opened his own design studio in Strandgade in Copenhagen. Soon after, Jacob Jensen Design moved to the suburb Frederiksberg with a staff of 8. This development involved more management than design, which did not suit Jacob Jensen’s taste. He reduced the staff to two and moved further outside the city to the village of Jyllinge. During this period, Jacob Jensen completed an extensive design concept for General Electric, which pointed towards Hi-Fisystems of the future. [General Electric] chose not to use the design, which later became the basis of B&O’s form language and strategy.
Hejlskov In 1966, Jacob Jensen Design moved to its present location, Hejlskov on the Limfjord. The house is a modern fortress, built by Jacob Hermann, one of Jacob Jensen’s former teachers at the School of Arts and Craft. It is situated in a beautiful and isolated landscape on the edge of the fjord. Joining Jacob Jensen are his American wife Patricia and their three children, Thomas, Katja and Timothy.
[edit] Bang & Olufsen
The move to Hejlskov was partly related to Jacob Jensen’s new client, B&O in Struer, 50 kilometres from Hejlskov. The relationship began in 1964 and continued in various forms until 1991. During this period, Jacob Jensen designed over 200 products for B&O, creating the exclusive form language, which has provided the company with its international status and survival niche.
[edit] The Museum of Modern Art
Jacob Jensen’s design is exhibited in a number of art and design museums around the world. The most significant of the international exhibitions is the solo exhibition at MoMA in New York in 1978: “Bang & Olufsen – Design for Sound by Jacob Jensen”. The exhibition comprised 28 audio products. Both before and after the exhibition, MoMA purchased Jacob Jensen designs for its permanent collection, and today owns 19 pieces
[edit] Other Products
Jacob Jensen is primarily known for his Bang & Olufsen audio designs, but as an industrial designer he has designed more than 500 products for various clients. Among these are hearing aids for GN Danavox, Hi-Fi for General Electric, office chairs for Labofa, telephones for Alcatel-Kirk, cable reels for JoJo, wind turbines for Vestas, kitchen hardware for Gaggenau Haugeräte, along with watches, telephones, weather stations and more under the brand name JACOB JENSEN.
[edit] Awards
Jacob Jensen Design has received around 70 design awards all over the world, including the USA, Japan, Germany, Italy, Austria, and England. In Denmark, Jacob Jensen has received the ID-award nine times, has been awarded the Knights Cross of the Order of Dannebrog, and is included in the Foreign Ministry’s list of “Great Danes”.
[edit] The Mediterranean
In 1981, Jacob Jensen realised his old dream of sailing. Together with his second wife Hanne and their two children, Troels and Toke, they sailed through the canals of Europe to the Mediterranean where the family eventually settled on Mallorca. For some time the studio was run from Mallorca with assistants in Hejlskov. Jacob Jensen still spends the winter abroad with his third wife, Nanna, while the sailing is done in Denmark during the summer.
[edit] Generational change
In 1990, Timothy Jacob Jensen, the youngest son of Jacob’s first marriage, took over the company. Timothy was apprenticed to his father from 1978 to 1981 and is now the owner, director and chief designer. With Timothy at the helm, the studio continues to be an exceptionally sought after and highly awarded enterprise. Furthermore, Timothy has developed an international product line under the brand name JACOB JENSEN. The JACOB JENSEN house today includes the companies; JACOB JENSEN HOLDING, JACOB JENSEN DESIGN and JACOB JENSEN BRAND. Jacob Jensen is still an active designer in the studio
