Exqvisita

Active in the latter-mid-20th-century, Exqvisita Style AB was a Stockholm-based manufacturer of modernist furniture. Although lesser known and less prolific than contemporaneous Swedish firms like Nordiska Kompaniet and Bodafors, Exqvisita was a striking—albeit limited—contributor to the more industrial wing of Scandinavian modernist design.

Exqvisita is particularly renowned for its modular, steel-framed shelving (ca. 1960s), a derivative of  iconic, wire-framed shelves of the earlier decade and an analogue to other revered midcentury freestanding casegoods, like Swiss designer Alfred Altherr’s shelving unit for Freba (ca. 1955); A.D. Dekker’s series of colorful, adjustable units for Tomado (ca. 1950s); and Louis van Teeffelen’s wall systems for WéBé featuring teak shelves and cabinets.

Made with oak and framed in black-lacquered metal, Exqvisita’s adjustable shelves appealed for their versatility, minimalist charm, and general lagom design ethos.

While the designers behind Exqvisita’s shelves remain unclear—as well as the rest of the company’s general history—pieces like Exqvisita’s Model 14 Bookshelves and Sonja Bookshelves (both ca. 1960s) are steadily making the rounds on the vintage market at relatively accessible prices.