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For the first time ever, an auction featuring over 200 lots of iconic and rare IKEA models – from the 1950s all the way to today – is being presented. Under the new flag “Auctionet Special,” visitors are invited to a unique themed auction where more than 30 of Auctionet’s affiliated auction houses from across Sweden – and even a few from Germany – have contributed items that together form a vibrant mosaic of interior design history.
A Tribute to Swedish Design Classics
The selection includes many of IKEA’s most beloved and trendsetting furniture pieces. Among the highlights are Karin Mobring’s safari armchair “Diana” Gillis Lundgren’s distinctive 1960s spindle-back chair “Eker,” and Niels Gammelgaard’s iconic 1980s bookshelf “Guide.” But it’s not only the well-known classics that attract attention. The auction also features true rarities, such as the quirky hanging chair “Holken,” the modular 1990s sofa “Mella,” and Rutger Andersson’s near-mythical “Karelen” pieces – which, despite major publicity at launch, never made it into IKEA’s Swedish catalogs.
Reusing - Best Practice
Andreas Siesing, specialist at Auctionet, shares his excitement about the auction and comments on the breadth of the offering, where furniture, lamps, porcelain, and cutlery from different eras come together. The auction offers an inspiring palette for both collectors and those looking to refresh their homes in a sustainable way.
Auctionets specialist Andreas Sieasing is devoted to IKEA’s rich design legacy.
It’s often said that IKEA furnished the Swedish welfare home. Now, Auctionet is redecorating! Old, not-so-old, and even fairly new models will find new homes and serve in new settings. A perfect example of reuse, you might say.
IKEA’s Journey – From Swedish Countryside to Global Household Name
The auction also reflects IKEA’s incredible evolution since its inception. It all began on July 15, 1943, when a young Ingvar Kamprad founded a modest mail-order company. Four years later, the company began selling furniture, and in 1951 the first IKEA catalog was published. The rest is history – with expansion across the Nordics, Europe, and eventually the entire world.
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Kamprad’s vision – that good design doesn’t have to be expensive – was central to the brand, a point sharply expressed by Lena Simonsson-Berge in IKEA’s documentary “Hej Ingvar! The Playful Entrepreneur”:
“He was almost obsessed with the idea of proving that good things don’t have to be expensive.”
This very idea runs through the entire theme of Auctionet Special: IKEA Through the Years.
Classics, Rare Finds, and Unique Catalogs
The themed auction showcases everything from early bestsellers by designers like Karin Mobring, Gillis Lundgren, and Erik Wørts to modern creations by Ehlén Johansson, Ingegerd Råman, and Thomas Sandell. Mass-produced favorites in plastic and pine sit side by side with unusual and small-scale productions.
An impressive collection of IKEA catalogs is also included – notably, the elusive 1950s editions, a must-have for serious collectors.
Welcome to Auctionet Special: IKEA Through the Years – an auction filled with nostalgia, design history, and future favorites.
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