Piet Hein, danish design and the super-egg

Piet Hein was a modern danish renaissance man. He was born in 1905, died in 1996, studied mathematics, started art studies he never finished, started studies in theoretical physics and never finished that either. He wrote books, poetry (“gruks”); did illustration, designed objects and public spaces, researched mathematics and was a cosmopolitan. He is famous for the superellipse, though contrary to popular belief, he did not “discover” or “invent” it (everything you want to know about the mathematical properties of the superellipse and the super-egg, you can find here).

 

However; he used the superellipse to design beautiful and useful objects. Classics in danish design.

Piet Hein super-egg table
Piet Hein super-egg table

Piet Hein super-egg table
Piet Hein table

Piet Hein super-egg vases
Piet Hein svases

Piet Hein super-egg salt and pepper
Piet Hein super-egg salt and pepper

Piet Hein super-egg lamp
Piet Hein super-egg lamp

Piet Hein super-egg lamp
Piet Hein super-egg lamp

Piet Hein super-egg bowls
Piet Hein bowls
Piet Hein super-egg candle holder
Piet Hein candle holder

Piet Hein super-egg roundabout
Piet Hein roundabout

Piet Hein super-egg swimming pool
Piet Hein sswimming pool

…He did, of course, design other things, that was not based on the superellipse. In fact, being a multitalented, his interests had a huge span. I might come back to that another day, but here are some vases he designed after playing with the thought of twisting some columns on a building in Copenhagen…

Piet Hein vase
Piet Hein vase

Piet Hein vase
Piet Hein vase

 

 

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