Nordic Table Design. A Quiet Female Revolution (1900–1970)
The exhibition “Nordic Table Design. A Quiet Female Revolution (1900–1970)”, curated by Fabia Masciello, is a journey dedicated to 20th-century Nordic female design, exploring innovation, domestic culture, and aesthetic research.
Dates: June 20, 2026 – January 10, 2027
Category: Exhibition
Organizer: MIC Faenza – International Museum of Ceramics
Venue
MIC Faenza
Viale A. Baccarini 19, Faenza
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Contacts
Phone: +39 0546 69 73 11
Email: info@micfaenza.org
Website: micfaenza.org
The exhibition
The exhibition presents around forty-five female designers, artists, and intellectuals active between 1900 and 1970, telling a new history of design built through multiple female voices against the backdrop of struggles for gender equality.
The project highlights the contribution of these figures who, with a humanistic approach deeply connected to everyday life, initiated a true “quiet revolution” in the way tableware and domestic objects are conceived.
Plates, glasses, pots, and cutlery are reinterpreted in functional and economical terms, without sacrificing aesthetic quality. Designers experiment with new materials, colors, and forms, following the Modern Movement principle that “form follows function”.
Works and collections
The exhibition brings together high-quality pieces from producing companies, private collections, and museums. It covers seventy years of female-led design applied to table objects and design culture.
A special section is dedicated to works related to the Faenza Prize – International Competition of Ceramic Art, particularly the 1964–1974 period, when industrial design was included as a category.
During those years, numerous Nordic manufacturers participated with female designers, including Grete Rønning, Marianne Westman, Rut Bryk, and Hertha Bengtson, who received major awards. These works are now part of the MIC Faenza collection.
A link between Faenza and European design
The exhibition highlights the role of MIC Faenza as a meeting point between Italian ceramic tradition and international design, emphasizing the contribution of Nordic female designers as central figures in a broader European cultural transformation.
