Birger Johannes Kaipiainen (1 July 1915 – 18 July 1988) was a Finnish ceramist and designer. He is one of the most successful and well-known ceramic artists in

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

. Kaipiainen graduated from the School of Arts and Crafts (later known as the Aalto School of Arts of

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

. After that he went to work for Finnish ceramics company

Arabia The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate. ...

in 1937, and later in 1954 for their Swedish sister company

Rörstrand Rörstrand porcelain was one of the most famous Swedish porcelain manufacturers, with production initially at Karlbergskanalen in Birkastan in Stockholm. History The Rörstrand waterfront site was first documented in the 13th century, whe ...

. Kaipiainen worked as a designer for Arabia over fifty years. As a child he was Kaipiainen suffered from

Polio Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe s ...

and was consequently unable to use a pottery wheel. It was said that his illness heightened his artistic sensitivity. Kaipiainen was nicknamed “the king of decorators”, for his nostalgic, romantic and highly decorative ceramic designs, at a time when minimalism was the prevailing trend in Finnish ceramics. He is known for repeatedly using the same signature nature inspired motifs, such as violets and curlews. His most famous designs were made at the

ceramics factory. For example, the ''Paratiisi'' (Paradise) series, designed in 1969, which is still in production. ''Paratiisi'' was one of the first silkscreen printed series made by Arabia. Another noted design by Kaipiainen, the Sunnuntai (Sunday) series designed in 1971 was brought back into production by the Arabia company in 2019.

Awards

*Grand Prix, Milano 1951 *

Pro Finlandia The Order of the Lion of Finland ( fi, Suomen Leijonan ritarikunta; sv, Finlands Lejons orden) is one of three official orders in Finland, along with the Order of the Cross of Liberty and the Order of the White Rose of Finland. The President o ...

medal 1963 *Grand Prix, Montreal world exhibition 1967 *Title of professor 1977 *Prince Eugen medal 1982

References

External links

Kaipiainen, Birger (1915–1988).
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kaipiainen, Birger Finnish designers Finnish industrial designers Artists from Helsinki 1915 births 1988 deaths Recipients of the Prince Eugen Medal Finnish expatriates in Sweden