Designer and professor Yrjö Kukkapuro died on February 8, 2025, at his home in Kauniainen. He was 91 years old.
Kukkapuro’s long career in design spanned over 70 years. Almost every Finn has sat on a chair he designed–at a metro station, in a bank, at school, or in a library. Yrjö Kukkapuro focused on public space furniture and office chairs, but their comfort made them well-suitable for homes.
Yrjö Kukkapuro never stopped designing and coming up with new ideas. Until the very end, he pondered a concept of his new chair, the plan of which was clear in his mind. His assistant didn’t have time to make drawings of the chair.
Designer and professor Yrjö Kukkapuro was born 1933 in Vyborg, Finland. His career began when Finnish design rose to international fame. Kukkapuros open-minded and experimental designs established his place among the elite of post-war designers.
Kukkapuro’s chairs received prizes and they are included in the collections of leading design museums, such as MoMA in New York, Victoria and Albert Museum in London, Vitra Museum, and Nationalmuseum in Stockholm. Chair models like Ateljee, Karuselli-chair, Long Chair, and Experiment are included in the collections.
Over the years Kukkapuro’s input in designs has been astonishing also in quantitative terms.
Kukkapuro worked in his studio side by side with his wife, artist Irmeli Kukkapuro (1934–2022). The studio and home, designed by Yrjö Kukkapuro and professor Eero Paloheimo, was built in 1968. The house will be turned into a museum in 2026.
Today Kukkapuro collaborates with several companies, like Artek / Vitra, Hem, Modeo, Lepo Product, Innolux, and Blond Belysning.