Room divider

Rare Swedish room divider or freestanding screen, produced by Lublins and dating from around the 1940s–1950s. Constructed entirely in pine, the piece consists of a continuous sequence of narrow vertical wooden slats joined by horizontal bands, creating an open architectural grid.

The screen has a warm honey-brown to reddish-brown tone, with the natural grain of the pine remaining clearly visible throughout. The individual slats are narrow and lightly rounded, while the wider horizontal members form a repeating structure across the surface. Their construction allows the screen to bend freely into curves rather than remaining as a rigid flat plane. It can therefore be arranged in a broad wave, a tighter serpentine configuration or partially rolled when not in use. The projecting ends of the vertical slats above and below the horizontal framework give the object an intentionally informal, almost trellis-like appearance.

This type of furniture relates closely to the Swedish tradition generally described as sportstugemöbler, or furniture for the country and weekend cottage. During the interwar and post-war periods, Swedish designers increasingly explored inexpensive native woods such as pine and straightforward methods of construction for informal interiors outside the city. The resulting furniture was deliberately different from polished urban furniture: visible grain, simple joinery, light construction and a direct relationship between material and function became important parts of its character.

The open construction gives the screen a particularly sculptural quality. Rather than creating a completely opaque wall, the closely spaced pine slats define separate areas while allowing light and views to pass through. When arranged in curves, the repeated vertical lines produce a changing rhythm of light, shadow and density. This combination of practical room division and architectural transparency gives the object a character somewhere between furniture, interior architecture and a freestanding wooden trellis.

The screen remains in good vintage condition with signs of use and an established patina consistent with its age. Variations in tone, small marks, minor surface wear and darker areas are visible throughout the pine. These traces have been retained and emphasize the natural character and age of the material.

The room divider measures approximately 150 cm high × 160 cm long × 1.5 cm thick (59.1 × 63 × 0.6 in). As the construction is flexible, its actual width and depth when standing depend on how tightly or broadly the screen is curved.

A second, smaller Lublins room divider of the same type is also available, allowing the two examples to be used individually or as a related pair.