The competition for the bookshelf of the future
In Dagens Nyheter on August 9, 1949, the publishing house Bonniers Folkbibliotek (BFB) and the Swedish Crafts Association announced a competition to see who could design a practical bookshelf. which the company's customers could place their books on and which could be expanded as new books were purchased.
It would hold two meters of books.
The director of Bonniers Public Library (BFB), Tage Jakobsson, announced a competition to design a simple wall-mounted bookshelf with space for two meters of books. The requirements were that the bookshelf should be easy to assemble and be able to be packed flat.
The winner is presented
The winner of the competition was presented in SvD on October 14, 1949, in a notice:
"The winning proposal, motto; String, expandable wall shelf, receives first prize and the sum of 1000 SEK in cash. The intention is to immediately begin manufacturing the new bookshelf type."
Second and Third Prizes to
Second prize went to Oscar Nilsson and Arne Nilsson for their entry Bokius. Third prize was awarded to Carl Cederholm and Ulla Malmgren for their entry Sonette.
Creator of the BFB Shelf and the String Shelf
The String Shelf or String Bookshelf was created by Nisse and Kajsa Strinning. It consists of veneered shelves that are hung on plastic-covered metal wire ends. The shelf became a huge sales success well into the 1960s.
When the bookshelf was presented as the winner, it was called the BFB Shelf.
Kristoffersson's picture illustrates
The picture taken by photographer KG Kristoffersson shows the String Shelf mounted on the wall in an exhibition that presents the String Shelf as the bookshelf of the future in all Swedish homes and libraries. Awarded 1st prize in the Crafts Association's and BFB's bookshelf competition. The woman seen in the picture is holding a sign that presents the winning shelf with the headline BFB-hyllan växt med er boksamling.
