Dutch design duo Kiki & Joost has opened a public exhibition area connected to the pair’s Eindhoven studio, permitting them to showcase their work in a extra “open and free” method with out counting on galleries.
Kiki van Eijk and Joost van Bleiswijk are a pair who make work as impartial designers and likewise collectively underneath the title Kiki & Joost.
The designers have positioned a mono-pitched exhibition area with a prefabricated Douglas fir construction adjoining to their Eindhoven studio and workshop, which was revealed throughout this month’s Dutch Design Week.
“The world is altering,” Van Eijk advised Dezeen. “Individuals are keen on design however they’re additionally keen on seeing how designers work, what their workshops are like, what they’re keen on.”
“We felt the urge to have an exhibition area for ourselves to current issues as quickly as they’re prepared, the place nothing is deliberate beforehand and it will probably all be tremendous natural,” she added. “It makes a large distinction from planning forward with museums or galleries.”
Assembled onsite inside two days, the fundamental construction incorporates no metal or glue and is held collectively by hammered wooden pins, whereas the flooring was completed in poured concrete.
“If crucial, it could be actually simple to take the construction aside and it may be recycled,” mentioned Van Eijk.
Spanning 190 sq. metres, the exhibition area is separated from Kiki & Joost’s studio and workshop by a planted courtyard backyard, which was landscaped by Van Eijk.
“All the things you see is designed by us or by a buddy,” mentioned Van Bleiswijk.
“Our constructing is totally energy-neutral,” added Van Eijk. “We now have photo voltaic panels that generate extra vitality than we operate for heating and machines.”
Roughly L-shaped, the exhibition area options ample room for impromptu exhibitions in addition to hid space for storing, together with cabinets hidden behind floor-to-ceiling folding doorways which are used for showcasing gigantic archival works.
In a single nook, there’s a tiny kitchen, whereas in one other Kiki & Joost created an open-plan store for guests. Nevertheless, the designers emphasised that promoting work was not their main motivation for the area.
“We intentionally name it an exhibition area moderately than a gallery as a result of we do not wish to compete with galleries,” defined Van Eijk.
“We do not see ourselves as a gallery. We do not actually have a industrial perspective. After all, individuals should buy one thing right here however that is not our foremost aim. We simply wish to current our works in an excellent open and free method.”
Throughout Dutch Design Week, Kiki & Joost introduced a joint exhibition on the area referred to as Carte Blanche. Among the many works on present have been ceramic and handblown glass objects by Van Eijk and daring furnishings by Van Bleiswijk knowledgeable by “a vivid punk aesthetic”.
The duo mentioned that they plan for the area to serve the native design scene, with a Design Academy Eindhoven pupil exhibition already scheduled for January.
“We hope that the exhibition area will improve the group feeling in Eindhoven,” Van Eijk mentioned, including that the pliability of the area will permit it to accommodate a spread of various design exhibits.
“If somebody involves us with an fascinating thought, we would like to have the ability to improvise,” she added.
Beforehand initiatives from Kiki & Joost embody a group of distinctively patterned photo voltaic panels for Dutch firm MyEnergySkin.
Different highlights at this yr’s Dutch Design Week ranged from cartoonish furnishings to a six-tiered pyramid wrapped in vibrant flags providing 80 completely different symbols for peace.
