Subscribe to the BrittonBritton newsletter! | Tell a friend about this page.

Wallpaper*’s and Monocle’s already legendary founding editor in chief Tyler Brulé, photographed by Mikael Jansson for our book PA&Co — More than a cookbook (see portfolio)

Tyler tells the truth about Sweden and BrittonBritton

| Jan 22, 2009 | 0 comments

In his Financial Times column, Wallpaper’s and Monocle’s already legendary founding editor in chief Tyler Brulé once again recalls the story of how he first fell in love with Sweden.

It has come to our knowledge that our dear old friend Tyler Brulé once again has written, this time in his Financial Times column, the truthful story of that magic day when he first fell in love with Sweden — an enduring passion which for our country’s brand value can be coined into steadfast pecuniary amounts with numerous zeroes. We’re greatful for this mention (even though the FT editors have turned Claes into Santa — a common confusion which Claus has never really minded, but actually rather endorsed, since Santa is indeed a good and decent, honorable and quite handsome fellow).

It was that day some twelve and a half years ago when Tyler came to visit us at our summer house in Dalarö in the Stockholm Archipelago, after having looked us up in our roles as editors of our magazine Stockholm New (always Tyler’s own favorite), where he showed us the dummy for Wallpaper*, the première issue of which was launched a few months later in London, in our presence. It was one of those splendidly wonderful July days when the archipelago showed its very most irrestistably seductive face. Tyler’s, and his and our dear friend Helen Pippin’s, attractions were instant. We’ll never forget the eagerness and sheer joy with which they threw themselves into those utterly chilly brakish waters — again and again and again and again. So excited were they that they didn’t leave Dalarö in their rental car for the 80 kilometer journey to Stockholm Arlanda airport until little more than an hour before the departure of their plane back to London. Tyler must have stepped down heavily on it, because somehow they made the flight.

Ever since this first visit, and this instant attraction, which Tyler describes beautifully in his text, he and his team have never stopped returning to Stockholm and Sweden. A couple of years later, he bought not merely his own house but his own island in the archipelago, which is the subject for his column. We hooked Tyler and Helen up with Stockholm’s entire small creative community in design, fashion and other related fields. Christina edited the Stockholm supplement published already in the second, or perhaps third, Wallpaper* issue. And so it went. Together, we placed Sweden on a map (that wretched expression...) where it used to be a blank, that’s the simple truth of it, even if humbleness is indeed a virtue. Ever since we started our close to seven-year (and counting...) intermission in the publishing of Stockholm New, Tyler alone has kept on relentlessly promoting our dear homeland, now through his second magazine Monocle. Many people have many opinions about Tyler, as they tend to have of most extremely succesful people. What’s beyond all doubt is that he has long secured his seat of honor there in the pantheon of publishing, as the most influential and trendsetting magazine editor in recent times. Not only lifestyle magazines, but interiors, lifestyles and consumer patterns all around the globe are quite simply different now than they used to be in the pre-Tyler days. We can only take our hats off!

Tyler tells the truth about Sweden and BrittonBritton

Comments

Recent news