Original design

Design philosophy. Art into industry

At HOWE, our design philosophy takes its point of departure from the Bauhaus tradition of combining design, simplicity, quality, and functionality. And takes it further.

We believe that all of our furniture solutions must be foldable or stackable, thus creating space for multiple use in any given room. We believe that furniture shouldn’t define the limitations of a room.

The Creative Expression of Bauhaus

This design marks the first time when HOWE and Bauhaus were brought together. One of HOWE’s most iconic products, the 40/4 chair by David Rowland, was strongly influenced by the Bauhaus movement. David Rowland studied at the Cranbrook Academy of Art, where he was trained by, among others, László Moholy-Nagy, the great Bauhaus émigré.

The combination of the European avant-garde and modern design with American technical know-how allowed him to create some of the most unique seating ever produced. Today, the 40/4 chair is a part of the temporary collection at the Bauhaus Museum in Dessau, Germany.

Rowland called himself an “architect of products.” The scope and quantity of his work might seem limited, but in truth it was dedicated to the greatest cause – to design a minimal stacking chair. With minimalization being the end state in all senses: materials, weight, volume, and cost. His outstanding work was a further development of the Bauhaus modern aesthetic.

The 40/4 series has become one of the most widely used chairs of the last quarter century because of its stacking properties. Rowland worked for more than twenty years to perfect the idea for this mass-produced chair.

Form follows function

Less is more

When we think about Bauhaus today, we may describe design stripped down to its essentials — the rational and elegant use of modern materials and industrial techniques, simplicity, cool minimalism. These are values that we celebrate at HOWE.

Our concept and design philosophy are rooted deeply in the Bauhaus tradition. HOWE’s functional design furniture solutions are all analysed and engineered down to the most minute detail. Mobility, stackability, multi-functionality. Everything has a clear purpose and is designed for mass production as well as for individual use.

The minimalist aesthetics of our furniture solutions are indeed timeless, democratic, and global.

BRILLIANT, SIMPLIFIED, AND REDUCED TO WHAT IS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY, YET FULL OF ELEGANCE AND GRACE. OUR PHILOSOPHY AT HOWE, IN MANY WAYS, PARALLELS THE MOST INFLUENTIAL MODERNIST ART SCHOOL OF THE 20TH CENTURY: THE BAUHAUS.

Useful and beautiful

From our perspective, every room should support and facilitate the ability to think and act freely. While functionality and versatility are fundamental, we also put great effort into creating furniture that will easily blend into any interior design and décor, and therefore enhance the architecture and visual ambience overall.

HOWE today

Since HOWE’s start in the 1920s, supreme functionality has been an integrated part of our furniture solutions. In the beginning, form followed function, but soon thereafter, form became just as important as function.

Design, we believe, is about the marriage of function and form. All designers we work with follow this philosophy strictly.

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Moving towards sustainability

Sustainability

HOWE GUARANTEES A LONG-LASTING AND ENVIRONMENTAL SOLUTION THAT PERFORMS STRONG ON FUNCTION AND AESTHETICS

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