Dutch Design Week opens: Eindhoven shows nine days of 'raw' design
From Saturday to October 25, Eindhoven becomes a stage for design. The R.A.W. theme puts unpolished, experimental work centre stage – from aluminium furniture to 50 new chairs.
Symbolic image · Photo: FaceMePLS from The Hague, The Netherlands / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0 (cropped and resized)
The 26th Dutch Design Week begins in Eindhoven this Saturday. Until October 25, designers will present exhibitions, talks, workshops and films in institutions, galleries, studios and public spaces. The theme is R.A.W. – short for 'Rebel Authentic Worth'. The organisers want to highlight 'unpolished, exploratory and experimental' work.
Several shows stand out for furniture and interiors. In 'Forward Furniture', curated by Liv Vaisberg, almost 100 designers each present three pieces. Teun Zwets shows 50 new chairs in his studio, moving away from his familiar splintered-wood style. For '01 Alu Edition', 14 designers turned aluminium offcuts from street lighting poles and extrusion profiles into new products. Teresa van Dongen presents a transparent window decal that works as a solar-powered night light.
With 'Local Linoleum', Christien Meindertsma traces the origins of the materials in everyday objects, while Simon Weckert shows a shirt designed to disrupt facial recognition in surveillance cameras. 'If you only see one thing, make it the Design Academy Eindhoven graduation show,' advises design magazine Dezeen.