Yki Nummi (1925-1984)
designer
Yki Nummi was born in the province of Huan in China, where his parents worked as missionaries. After matriculating in 1945, Nummi first studied mathematics and physics, but later opted for a career in design, graduating from the department of decorative painting of the Institute of Applied Arts in Helsinki in the spring of 1950.
Nummi was a versatile designer, who played a part in making Finnish design world-renowned in the 1950s. Upon graduating, he was employed as a designer by the Stockmann-Orno lamp and light-fixture factory, serving in this capacity until 1975. One of his best-known lamp designs was Modern Art, produced by Orno in 1955. Yki Nummi also designed lighting and light fixtures for many schools, hospitals, restaurants and other public facilities.
In the 1950s and 1960s, Yki Nummi designed light fixtures and various types of serving trays and containers for the Sanka company of Loviisa in acrylic, which was a new material at the time. His designs evolved in the factory’s Y Collection. Nummi is one of the pioneers of design in plastics in Finland.
Nummi himself regarded colour design as his most important professional contribution. He began to design for the Tikkurila paint factory of the Schildt & Hallberg company in 1950, and was head of the factory’s design and planning department from 1958 until 1975. He established a paint and colour service office at the factory and developed a paint-mixing system known as the Joker colour chart. Nummi also designed colour schemes for schools, hospitals and factories and, among other works, the interior and exterior colour schemes of Helsinki Cathedral in connection with the renovation of the church in the mid-1960s. He also created municipal colour schemes for various localities, such as Kokemäki, Nokia and Karkkila.
Nummi began to design book covers as a student, making covers and illustrations for works by his brother Lassi Nummi and a number of other authors. He also designed wallpapers.
Yki Nummi participated in a large number of exhibitions and trade fairs. His works were awarded gold medals at the Milan Triennials of 1954 and 1957. He received the Pro Finlandia medal in 1971.
Auli Suortti-Vuorio
Bibliography
Smedberg, Mika, Taiteilija Yki Nummi. Muoto 2/1984
Aav, Marianne ja Kalin, Kaj, Suomalainen muoto. Form Finland. Form Finnland. Taideteollisuusmuseon julkaisu no 21. Helsinki 1986
Siltavuori, Eeva. Fact and fiction design. 50 years of Finnish design. Pss Cuttings 1940-1990. Form Function Finland vol. 2/1990
Photos:
Salad bowl and forks (Sanka Oy 1959)
The Sanka company of Loviisa, which made the acrylic parts of Yki Nummi’s lamps and light fixtures also created the Y Collection of plastic utility objects designed by Yki Nummi – bowls, trays, platters for cold cuts, salad servers, cheese-dish covers and cigarette and cigar cases. Many of the items included hardwood parts of red padouk, dark teak, jacaranda, rosewood and other types of wood. The plastic objects were available in various colours: black, white, grey-brown, red and clear plastic. The salad bowl shown here is of acrylic and the fork stems are of jacaranda. Photo Design Museum
The Lotus stool (Sanka Oy 1964)
The Lotus stool is an example of bold furniture design concepts of the 1960s and faith in the future of plastics as the material of the future. Available in various colours, the stool was made of polyester reinforced with acrylic. Photo Design Museum
The Modern Art lamp (Stockmann-Orno 1955)
Owing to his studies in mathematics and physics, Yki Nummi had a theoretical knowledge of light and its properties. In the 1950s, the design of lamps and light fixtures was perhaps less complex than at present, because the items were not produced in large series and commercial considerations were not paramount. It was possible to experiment and to realize bold concepts. The Modern Art lamp is one such concept. It was made of acrylic, a new material adopted by the Stockmann-Orno factory in 1951. In keeping with the spirit of the 1950s, the lamp is of simplified form. Its cylindrical clear acrylic base is combined with a thin, translucent shade filtering light evenly. The lamp received its name from being obtained for the collections of New York’s Museum of Modern Art. Photo Design Museum
Book cover (Otava 1949)
Yki Nummi designed his first book covers and illustrations while studying at the Institute of Industrial Arts in Helsinki. These works included the cover of an anthology of poems Intohimo olemassaoloon by his brother Lassi from 1949. Also published in 1949 was Lassi Nummi’s book of poems Vuoripaimen, which Yki Nummi regarded as his most important work of illustration. While still a student of design, Yki Nummi also designed the covers for books by Lasse Heikkilä, Aino Kallas and Lassi Nummi. In 1960, he illustrated a collection of tankas edited by Tuomas Anhava, which has appeared in several editions. Photo Design Museum
