VEF radio dizains. 1932–1941
VEF Radio Design. 1932–1941
Author(s): Baiba FreimaneSubject(s): Essay|Book Review |Scientific Life
Published by: Mākslas vēstures pētījumu atbalsta fonds
Keywords: Latvian design; industrial design; VEF company; radio sets; radio casings; design history; Art Deco; neoclassicism; functionalism; streamline style; national style
Summary/Abstract: Radios produced by the State Electro-Technical Factory (VEF) during the inter-war period of independence are among the top achievements of Latvia’s industrial design. They were internationally recognised and highly appreciated, making a significant contribution to Latvia’s exports. This article aims to outline the development of radio production in Latvia with an emphasis on the leading VEF company from 1932 to 1941 while also establishing the place of radios in the context of Art Deco and the history of industrial design in Latvia. With the founding of the VEF Radio Department in 1932, production of radios rapidly increased in Latvia; they conformed to the requirements of the period and attention was given to their outer appearance thus opening up new possibilities of creating the visual image of the new medium. The 1930s in radio design is first of all the period of Art Deco. This can be seen in individual decorative details of VEF radios, the structures of their geometric forms and their eclectic, elegant modernist lines. Along with neo-classicist overtones, VEF radio designs reveal avant-garde decorative solutions, such as metal flashes on the front panel. Radio casings of the 1930s synthesise not just Art Deco and functionalism but also a retrospective interest in classical art and the ethnographic heritage with the aim of constructing local, national aesthetics. Participation in international exhibitions secured recognition of VEF radios on a wider scale. They were awarded the Grand Prix for technical and visual quality at the Brussels International Exhibition in 1935. VEF products were also shown at the 1937 Exposition Internationale Arts et Technique dans la Vie Moderne in Paris. The design of VEF radio receivers conformed to the concept of contemporary industrial design early on. A study of materials owned by Latvian collectors as well as the creation of a catalogue of foreign examples would permit the discovery of new connections in radio design research.
Journal: Mākslas Vēsture un Teorija
- Issue Year: 2012
- Issue No: 15
- Page Range: 15-25
- Page Count: 10
- Language: Latvian
- Content File-PDF