Active since the 1950s, Sven Ivar Dysthe (1931 – 2020) began working internationally from the start of his career. Dysthe trained as a cabinet-maker before leaving his native Oslo for London, where he received a degree in industrial design from the Royal College of Art in 1953. During his final year, Dysthe was asked to create a luxurious wooden chest for the college to present to Queen Elizabeth II in honour of her coronation. Dysthe returned to Oslo and established his own design studio in 1958, and began exporting his furniture in the early 1960’s.

Since then, Dysthe’s work has received a number of national and international distinctions, including a Gold Medal award at the Ljubljana Biennale for his Laminette chair, a prestigious Japanese G-Mark for good design and the Norwegian Classic Award for Design Excellence. Dysthe’s works have been collected by national institutions, such as the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, the National Museum in Stockholm and the National Museum in Oslo. Dysthe’s Butterfly wall lamp, designed in 1964, continues to be produced and exported today. Like many of Dysthe’s designs, Butterfly is as popular abroad as it is at home.

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