About
Year
1936–2020
Birth name
Erik Severin Risager-Hansen
Place
Copenhagen, Denmark
Manufacturer
Haslev Møbelsnedkeri / Royal Copenhagen
Story
Erik Severin Risager-Hansen, known as Severin Hansen Jr., was a Danish furniture designer who left a distinctive mark on postwar Danish tables and desks. Born in Copenhagen in 1936, he is said to have grown up in a family involved in cabinetmaking and furniture retail, and from the late 1950s he worked on furniture design for Haslev Møbelsnedkeri.
A defining feature of Hansen’s furniture is the precise three-way mitre joint where the legs, rails and the edge of the top meet. In the Model 36 Desk, dining tables, side tables and dressing tables, the joint functions both as a structural solution and as a visual device that shapes the outline of the furniture. Slender legs, visually thin tops and broad surfaces that emphasize the grain of woods such as rosewood create a restrained but taut composition.
The furniture produced by Haslev Møbelsnedkeri from the late 1950s through the 1960s, particularly desks and tables, also circulated in overseas markets. During the 1960s the earlier angular joint treatment developed into tables with softer, more rounded corners, broadening the formal range while retaining the same structural idea.
Hansen is also known for tile-top tables that incorporated Royal Copenhagen ceramics into wooden frames. By combining tiles by artists including Nils Thorsson with precisely finished woodwork, these pieces introduced the colour and texture of another material into the otherwise quiet structure of his furniture.
Sources and the vintage market refer to his work under several names, including Severin Hansen Jr., Erik Severin, Erik Risager and Risager-Hansen. Today, the Model 36 and related desks and tables are known as Danish Modern furniture distinguished by slender proportions, careful use of wood grain and precise joinery.
History & Works
1936 (age 0)
Born in Copenhagen as Erik Severin Risager-Hansen.
1957 (age 21)
Began working on furniture design for Haslev Møbelsnedkeri.
c. 1958 (about age 22)
Developed the Model 36 Desk and a series of tables and desks distinguished by the three-way mitre joint.
1960s (late 20s–30s)
Haslev furniture circulated in overseas markets. Tile-top tables incorporating Royal Copenhagen ceramics were also developed.
1964 (age 28)
A table series appeared in which the three-way joint was developed into a softer, more rounded form.
1969 (age 33)
Reported to have become a co-owner of Haslev Møbelsnedkeri.
1978 (age 42)
Reported to have left Haslev and stepped back from professional furniture design.
2020 (age 84)
Died.
Furniture
Model 36 Desk
Dining Tables
Coffee Tables
Side Tables
Nesting Tables
Dressing Table
Tile-top Tables with Royal Copenhagen tiles