Dutch
Design Port
7 September / 28 October 2007
TENT. Rotterdam
TENT. presents the exhibition Dutch Design Port: a showcase of ten leading
Dutch designers who
receive international acclaim as representatives of what has become known
as Dutch Design:
Jurgen Bey
Demakersvan
Simon Heijdens
Richard Hutten
Hella Jongerius
Chris Kabel
Joris Laarman
Atelier van Lieshout
Bertjan Pot
Wieki Somers
curator: Aad Krol (VIVID Gallery)
Everyone is familiar with at least one of their objects. The remarkable
thing is that all these designers are based in Rotterdam. The exhibition
tells the story of the current blossoming and diversity of design community
in Rotterdam.
All the designers are linked by the fact that their activities involve
creating products for both the larger (mass) market, and unique pieces
that are collected in the art world. They are aware of the art-status
of design in the Netherlands, but they also design for large companies
such as Ikea and Fatboy. The choices of materials or motifs are often
based on historical references and a genuine interest in forgotten crafts
or traditional materials. But practical functionality and the contemporary
form are always imperative. Dutch Design Port was shown at the Milk Gallery,
New York in May and was organized by VIVID Gallery (Aad Krol & Saskia
Copper).
In the exhibition, each designer shows a selection of celebrated and less
well-known work. Simon
Heijdens presents his high-tech installation Reed, a lighting installation
that reacts to wind sensors, Jurgen Bey shows Stubborn Chair; Wieki Somers
High Tea Pot is a porcelain pigs skull with a ratfur cap; Hella Jongerius
presents her work in an old Hungarian cabinet.
In Rotterdam the 'Board Room' by Atelier van Lieshout has been added to
the Dutch Design Port exhibition.
The brand-new installation was shown this summer for the first time in
the Project Space of the Hayward Gallery in London. This Upper Chamber
is the nerve centre of Atelier Van Lieshout's Slave City. The seven metre
long table is laid with crockery for each of the twenty board members
of Slave City.
Thursday 4 October
20.00 h
Lecture by Tracy Metz
Beyond a joke:
Humour in Dutch Design
Thursday 18 October 20.00 h
Design Idols
What will the future of Dutch Design look like? Who will the jury, incl.
Chris Kabel (designer) and Mare Nieborg (trend watcher), tip be the next
top Dutch designer? A competition for up-and-coming talent with a strong
stomach for criticism.
