Pekka Harni

He has designed products for leading design companies, such as Marimekko and Arabia in Finland, and Satira in Portugal. In 1999, he received the Design Plus Award at the Ambiente Frankfurt Fair, in Germany. He has been teaching at the Aalto University School of Art and Design since 1988. He has also been a visiting lecturer in several European design universities and a leader of several design workshops in Europe and in Mexico.

Pekka Harni’s theoretical framework on morphological “object categories”, which divides basic home objects into seven functional and morphological categories, has been applied and employed in several European design schools. Pekka Harni has been collaborating with his wife, the Japanese designer Yuka Takahashi, in various design and architectural projects since 2002. In 2007 they establish the company Harni–Takahashi Ltd. Design & Architecture, which is specialized in architecture and industrial design and also offers design services for urban planning, interior, furniture, lighting, ceramic, and textiles.

Pekka Harni has designed for Arabia the Nero dishes, an endlessly adaptable range with a distinct modern look. The sharp angles and clean lines of the Nero dishes provide a stylish table setting. These Japanese-inspired dishes are available both in black and in white and a touch of red and turquoise adds spice to the range. Pekka Harni’s work can be found in several museum collections, including the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Arabia Museum, Helsinki, Finland; and the Design Museum, Helsinki, Finland.