Weaving + Shape Shifting x Books / Busy

= Dutch Design Week 2018

On the market during DDW 2018

"If not us, then who?" Good question! At Strijp-S

Recycled textile by Enschede Textielstad at DDW 2018

Lisa Konno set-up in the Veemgebouw at DDW 2018

First thing I noticed, How Busy It Was! It was Tuesday and Strijp-S was covered with a crowd. Good that Dutch Design got such a big audience interested, but it makes it hard to see more then two or three locations. And with so many many locations participating now, you need to see more locations in order to discover the true cherries of that year. So I totally felt I was missing out!
I didn't had that much time and no time to go a second day, so I decided to go to the locations I liked best last year {see previous post with the label 'Dutch Design Week'}.
I think nowadays you need at least 2 days and enough time to check online which things actually make it to peoples online feeds.
So this years review is just a little peak of this years DDW!

I started at Strijp-S were I got my press-card and a really fun, but heavy goodie-bag!
I made my way through the tinyhouses and bright yellow NS pop-up station towards the Veemgebouw. I went in the 'skatepark' which was as far as I could remember participating the first time, or I never really went in before. From the description online, I marked it as a must-see, but inside the recycled textile-installation was just a garland going through the building...
In the Veemgebouw things got much better. It was less impressive this year, because I really missed the carwash experience while entering the parking-lot, but still I enjoyed what I saw inside.
One highlight definitely was The Swedish School of Textiles. They  had a simple yet affective set-up of experiments by their students. Which were both fun and full of potential. I talked with them briefly and they told me this was their first time here and would definitely participate in future DDW's, can't wait!
Another highlight was again the Craft Council Nederland 'How & Wow Studio'. There were the cutest baby looms I ever saw, Bas Kosters lifejacket robot bags and other pretty handmade stuff gathered in a colourful setting, what's not to like!

Presentation  The Swedish School of Textiles at the Veemgebouw at DDW 2018

Baby loom and handy-crafters 

at the Craft Council 'How & Wow Studio', 

in the background Bas Kosters robotbag, 

at the Veemgebouw at DDW 2018

Part of the Craft Council 'How & Wow Studio'

at the Veemgebouw at DDW 2018

At Bijenkorf during DDW 2018

Modebelofte

After the Veemgebouw I headed towards the City Center of Eindhoven. In the Bijenkorf an artist-in-residence had took place in the roof-top-room, so I popped in to see. I think the Artist had fun making the dripping paintings, but what it had to do with design was beyond me. However, it made a pretty image for a pretty picture.

In the old V&D they hosted again the Modebelofte. Inside of a mixture of a snow-globe and Barbapapa's home, the exhibition was held.  The theme was 'Shape Shifters', so clothing was shown that would transform you, even create a new species by wearing them. Next to the clothing, little projections on the walls showed how the outfits would move. 

It was such a weird realisation not liking the “static” cloths, but liking how they moved. I realised how we often buy our clothing of the “rack” or of a mannequin or picture online and not really buy it on how it moves. Yes, we let 2D models show fashion on a runway, but they move mostly more like ‘clothing-hangers’ if we are being honest {happily this is getting less and less}.

Interesting that by presenting clothing that shape shifts, you actually appreciate the power of clothing and how they can change the way they make you feel, walk or move. How the transformation can and should be part of the fun of wearing clothing!

Modebelofte DDW 2018

Weaving & Books

They have been trying for years now, but I think weaving is really back! I spotted baby looms, weaving with alternative & recycled threads and many books on woven textiles. Next to weaving, the “Artist Book” or maybe better “Artistic Looking Books” are back. They were never really gone, but it was remarkable how many presentations included a {handgeschept} handmade paper book with rough edges, grey-tones pictures & essays in interesting looking typography.

What were your DDW 2018 highlights? And what trends did you notice? Please feel free to comment below! And looking forward to DDW 2019!

'150 Wooden shoes' by Max Stalter at the Veemgebouw at DDW 2018

Book 'Weaving as Metaphor' by Sheila Hicks spotted during DDW 2018

On Strijp-S during DDW 2018

Instagram Worthy x Yellow + Pink / Glitter =

Dutch Design Week 2017

'The Future City is Flexible' by MVRDV

On the market of Eindhoven

This year I could attend the Dutch Design Week as a fully recognised member of the press, jippie, so I could enter everywhere for free. I didn't get to visit everything I wanted, because it was a full program spread over Eindhoven City and I only had one day, but I enjoyed it very much! 

Every edition, I missed last year, I have been writing a review. I try to capture the main trend. This year I saw a lot of recurring trends; we still try to save the planet while creating more stuff, but I also noticed something else. I noticed that everything was sooo pretty, so "Instagram Worthy", so hashtag-able... Of course logical, you want your stuff to be shared. Before I went I saw so many things on Social Media that turned out to be more a photo opportunity then anything else. Not that there was a lack of stuff... the opposite, but I just felt everything was designed to look good online. And maybe that is precisely what it is about these days... I participate to this culture just as much, so don't read it as a judgement. I myself walked around DDW with my phone in my hand and a constant stream in my insta-stories.

Back of 'Off the Grass' at Veem during DDW

'How & Wow' by the Crafts Council during DDW 

I started my DDW 2017 with a visit to a new building for the festival. The former parking garage was turned into an exhibition space on two floors. The entrance was were normally the cars drive up. They decorated it with these fluor yellow strips of fabric. It was walking through a mix between a car wash and curtains.  I loved it!

In the building the Crafts Council made a big exhibition promoting the crafts & platforms they support. In bright yellow with hot pink 'How & Wow' showed classical things like Staphorst dot work and soap making. I liked the almost 80's kind of setting for these Dutch traditional things.

Collaboration of fashion designer Walter van Beirendonck 

& Staphorst dot-maker Gerard van Osten at 'How & Wow' at DDW

What you can do with flax, part of 'How & Wow' at DDW

What you can do with flax, part of 'How & Wow' at DDW

 
What you can do with flax, part of 'How & Wow' at DDW

Woven works by Marian Stubenitsky at 'How & Wow' at DDW

In the former V&D the 'Modebelofte' presentation was held. I always like how it is set up, previous years in the stadium, and now in this fitting setting of a former department store. The outside of the building already promised a iridescent experience. In a rainbow foil labyrinth the new "Fashion Promises" were shown. On and off turning spots on pounding music revealed futuristic looking fashion, some more wearable sculpture, others surprisingly wearable cool outfits. 

Outfit by Fabio Bigondi at Modebelofte which I love for obvious reasons

.......

Outfit by Han Kim at Modebelofte

In the same building Vlisco made a really nice presentation. I got totally green-eyed by it, wish I would be invited one day from a collaboration like this. They invited 'Fashion Promise' Sander Bos to design new prints and clothing with inspiration from their archive. The piece from the archive was this 1920's headscarf from the Haarlemsche Katoenmaatschappij. The design on it was inspired by Pagi-sore batiks, day and night batiks. Traditionally one side, normally on a sarong, was worn during the day, the other side in the evening. Also the design is light and dark. Both in color and in motif. I inspired my own Batik 'Difficult Time' on this design as well (read more on see www.sabinebolk.nl). 

Inspired by this wax print version of an original Batik design, Sander Bos made a glow in the dark wax print. On 4 mannequins in a separate space the glow in the dark wax print was designed into 4 outfits showing the different effects of the textile. I'm looking forward to how they are developing this later, and if more people get invited to do collaborations like this (hint hint).

Day and Night by Vlisco at DDW

Day and Night test textiles

Detail of 1920's Wax print headscarf from the Haarlemsche Katoenmaatschappij

Day and Night by Vlisco at DDW

Day and Night by Vlisco at DDW

Day and Night by Vlisco at DDW

Day and Night by Vlisco at DDW

Day and Night by Vlisco at DDW

Next to Social Shareable-feel of the DWW, it seemed like Fun & Future were themes too. Captured in a setting of many colours. Populair were yellow & pink, but also glitter. Yes Glitter! Looking back at the pictures, I was reminded of this article in the Volkskrant about the Unicorn-trend two weeks ago. DDW showed a world filled with glitter, rainbows, iridescent colours, tiny houses, longing for craft, yet very now and very futuristic... Unicorny, a theme-park ride almost. It was an escape, not really an answer. Yet I enjoyed the ride fully with iPhone first! Strange how you can enjoy it so much, yet feel uneasy about it...

In the end I felt more entertained then inspired. DDW is meant as a stage to present developments, but it seems that nowadays we don't really care about this story, we just want a pretty picture. It was still a lot about "Getting Stuff" instead of "Creating Better Stuff". So get ready for a year getting entertained without any real solutions.

ECAL Graphic Design at Veem at DDW

Vlisco rug by Simone Post, 

I missed the exhibition at DDW...

At Veem at DDW

Precious Plastic at Sectie-C at DDW

At the Klokgebouw at DDW

At Veem at DDW, can anyone tell me more on this? Please comment below

At Sectie-C at DDW, can anyone tell who made the jumpsuit, please comment below

Präsentation upcoming collaboration Zeeuw Museum and Das Leben am Haverkamp

Upcoming collaboration Zeeuw Museum and Das Leben am Haverkamp

For more on the Dutch Design Week visit www.ddw.nl

For previous reviews on the DDW see label 'Dutch Design Week' 

Re-ing is the new designing

But I still feel we are creating too much stuff. 

Couldn't enjoy this years Dutch Design Week. Finally got a blogger-pass, but was in the middle of moving. New city, small home...and a lot of stuff. Last 30 years (turned 31 on 2th of October, so that's just weeks now) flashed by in the form of nick-nacks, newspaper articles (both about me and my interests) and notebooks (which in style and layout apparently didn't change that much). I felt quite depressed while packing my stuff. Not that the last 30 years were not good and fun. They were good and fun. Not all of it, but most of it. It felt depressing because I did so much and have so much,  and yet it never feels like enough...interesting...

This leads me to our stuff problem. What do artists and designers do?

We make stuff!

And what are you going to make when there is already enough stuff? 

We make more stuff!

We are at an interesting point in time. We realize we have to much stuff, we have some solutions, but we still crave stuff. We made consumption our new religion and buying our new ritual of worshipping.*

We know we should make, buy, want less stuff, but that's tough because what are we going to sell, buy and want?

The 'talk' in Tegenlicht this week with the misleading title "Einde van bezit"/ "End of possessing"** (it's not about not having, it is about thinking different about what you have: Do you want a lamp or light? Keep your food fresh or a refrigerator?) made me happy to see creatives are making projects with this subject. But when is it going to stop being projects and start being just, well, just life!

That's why the Dutch Design Week didn't make me happy this year.

I was still surrounded with stuff. Old stuff made new, trash made into stuff and stuff changed into other stuff. If you're surrounded with boxes at home filled with your stuff, you really don't want stuff for a while. 

In my own work I chose 8 years ago that I wanted to create (shared) experiences and that my audience could only own the memory. But this is also a work in progress. I'm moving out of my studio next month and I still managed to create a lot of stuff while making temporary installations. So the circle is not round yet, but there is a start.

And that start is also made in the design world, now we just have to start living it! So continue with the re-ing: Reuse, reduce, recycle, redesign and rethink!

'We somehow have to act like there is going to be a future'

- Brian Eno in 'Einde van bezit'**

'Kassiewijle' by Visser & Meijwaard (flowers by Linda Nieuwstad) at TAC

Newshirt by Jetty van Wezel

Mmm looks familiar...

bri.co.lage 

is a collaboration of Het Ambachtshuis Brabant, Pandor, Studio Jo Meesters with secondhand shops. Apparently 53% of what comes in a secondhand shop doesn't find a second home. By redesigning or up-cycling objects using different crafts, they have a better chance of being bought. 

'Skateboarding Geisha' by Milligan Beaumont

'It's your world' exhibition at Klokgebouw

'Secret garden is a herbarium mirror, it offers you a version of the self filtered by a vegetal layer.'

Using DDW trash to make stuff

'It's your world' exhibition at Klokgebouw

Using DDW trash to make stuff part 2

Loved this project!! Pet it, keeping mycelium as a pet. With toys in which your mycelium can grow & explore. Wanted one, but already have a pet

What drives us to collective [ir]rationality? Was the question MU & KNOL asked themselves, while we walked into a maze like swarms or shoals. Note: I walked straight into a dead end, acted if I was taking pictures till I spotted other visitors and followed them haha

Spotted this poster and think it is amazing, but couldn't find the designer

For More:

* Watch 'Story of Stuff' on YouTube
** Watch 'Einde van bezit' on NPO (in Dutch)
*** I missed Bas Kosters coat project on DDW, but you can see his video on YouTube