Lasse Brunnström is Emeritus Professor of Design History at HDK - School of Design and Crafts, at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.

[There] is no other English-language book like this in the marketplace. Academic readers should be delighted as yet another barrier to Nordic design history has been stripped away by Brunnström’s book.

• Introduction1. Art to Industry: 1840s to 1910sThe nations’ struggle for product dominanceEducation for increased industrial competitivenessOn a mission to improve taste and moralityThe promised land of Windsor chairs and iron stovesThe product range grows and is differentiatedInventions pave the way for the manufacturing industryThe new industrial products are aestheticized but criticisedAttempts at artistic renewal2. On the industry’s terms: 1910s to 1940sSerial production enables the breakthrough of consumer goodsSwedish luxury production excelsThe Stockholm exhibition paves the way for the factory goodFunctionalist ideas pervade societyFurniture design is renewed and professionalisedProminent defenders of “good taste”The vision of the Swedish welfare state materialises3. The promotion of soft values: 1940s to 1950sWomen’s understanding of home economics is utilisedThe industrial designer demonstrates his talentsIntegrated design thinkingColourful plastic replaces the black eraMobility increases and the leisure sector expandsThe foundation is laid for the Swedish safety philosophyHuman dimensions and requirements govern designThe Swedish Society of Crafts and Design attain their goal of more beautiful everyday goodsEveryday items with classic status4. Broadened design commissions: 1950s to 1980sThe industrial design profession finds its formAdvertising becomes ever more important within designBreakthrough for female designersFactory packaging drives out bulkRationality shapes everyday lifeDesign protests against a grey and unjust worldDesign with a user focus becomes a speciality5. Limitless design: 1980s to 2000sVisual values are upgradedDesign is recognised as an economic success factorA personal signature becomes increasingly importantThe budget giants step into the sphere of designThe need for strategic brand design increasesStandards of taste and the gender power order are challengedSustainability permeates designCollections, meeting places, archives, awardsBibliographyIndex