Fredrik Paulsen creates limited-edition chair for helsinki’s DIY skateboarding festival
Designer Fredrik Paulsen teams up with Finnish Design Shop for the Vauhtikisat Chair One, a special furniture piece celebrating Helsinki's DIY skateboarding community.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
- Fredrik Paulsen designed the limited-edition Vauhtikisat Chair One for Helsinki's skateboarding festival.
- The project marks a collaboration with Finnish Design Shop alongside the launch of the JOY OBJECTS collection.
- Only five chairs are available for purchase, with one additional piece awarded to a competition winner.
- The chair was actually skated during the July 2026 festival, bridging design with DIY skate culture.
Growing up immersed in the Swedish skate scene deeply influenced Fredrik Paulsen's design philosophy, shaping how he perceives the intersection of everyday objects, creativity, and lifestyle. The Vauhtikisat Chair One embodies this very connection through a limited-edition furniture release tailored for Helsinki's grassroots skateboarding gathering, featuring graphic elements directly pulled from the festival's official illustrations.
Originating as a DIY skateboarding meetup in Helsinki back in 2014, the annual festival has expanded significantly over the years, now drawing upwards of 4,000 skateboarders to the city. Demonstrating its true integration into the culture, the Vauhtikisat Chair One was actively skated during the July 2026 festival events, perfectly capturing the communal, participatory, and hands-on spirit inherent to skateboarding.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
This partnership between designer Fredrik Paulsen and Finnish Design Shop also coincides with the introduction of Paulsen's JOY OBJECTS collection to the retailer's catalog, where a broader range of his creations will sit alongside the exclusive chair. A strict limit of five Vauhtikisat Chair One units are made available via Finnish Design Shop starting in July, while a sixth chair is reserved as a prize for the winner of the Vauhtikisat competition.
Merging high-concept design with raw, community-driven subcultures like DIY skateboarding highlights a growing shift in contemporary furniture design. By embedding objects directly into active social environments rather than static gallery spaces, creators can foster a genuine dialogue between functional art and everyday human experiences.
Source: designboom
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