Fredrik Paulsen brings Skateboard culture to the design of the chair
Swedish designer Fredrik Paulsen creates the limited edition Vauhtikisat Chair One in collaboration with Finnish Design Shop to mark Helsinki’s annual Vauhtikisat. skateboarding festival. THE chair includes the illustration of the event and was skated and given away during the July 2026 edition. Vauhtikisat is an annual skateboarding event held in Helsinki, Finlandevery July. What started as a DIY gathering in 2014 has grown into a major skateboarding event in Europe, bringing more than 4,000 skateboarders to the city’s highest hill park.
Paulsen grew up in the Swedish skate scene, an environment that influenced his approach to design and shaped his understanding of the relationship between objects, creativity and everyday life. Vauhtikisat Chair One extends this connection through a limited edition piece of furniture developed for the event, its graphic identity directly incorporating the festival’s imagery.
all images courtesy of Fredrik Paulsen
The Vauhtikisat Chair One extends Paulsen’s design into Skate culture
The collaboration between designer Fredrik Paulsen and Finnish design shop it also marks the arrival of Paulsen’s JOY OBJECTS collection at the Finnish Design Shop, where a wider selection of his works will be available alongside the limited edition chair. Five pieces of Vauhtikisat Chair One are available through the Finnish Design Shop from July, while an additional chair is awarded to the winner of the Vauhtikisat competition.
The collaboration places the chair within the context of skateboard culture, connecting limited-edition furniture with an event defined by participation, community and DIY production. For Paulsen, the project reflects the role skateboarding has played throughout his creative practice, while for Finnish Design Shop, the collaboration expands its focus on design objects situated within active cultural and social contexts.
Fredrik Paulsen creates limited edition Vauhtikisat Chair One for Helsinki Skateboard Festival
the chair was developed in collaboration with the Finnish Design Shop
Paulsen’s Swedish background in skateboarding informs the cultural context of the design
