Design

Can design help us change our perspective and reveal their potential as allies?

The exhibition SERIAL EATER at CID Grand-Hornu dissects thirty years of experimentation with, and reflection on, the ‘object’ of food. The analysis of Food Design, from its development in the 1990s to its implications today, makes it possible to understand changes in consumption habits and awareness of the ‘food system’.

What type of consumers are we, how do we assess our impact in today’s system and what do we accept on our plates?

Bilingual edition: French/English

Fibre-Fixed. Composites in Design shows and explains what can be achieved when fibres are combined with another material – usually a plastic or a bioplastic – to form fibre-reinforced composites.

Silversmiths Rob and Jaap Thalen, who enjoy an even greater reputation in the United States if possible than in Europe, are now ready for their second book.

Throughout the centuries, silverware has been a source of inspiration for many artists. Religious silverware raised the profession to unprecedented heights, but in the course of the 20th century commissions became scarce. More and more studios had to close their doors and monumental silverwork soon disappeared into the background. Gradually, training also left something to be desired. Father Rob and son Jaap Thalen’s dream is to make the very best again: objects, utensils and works of art in silver such as have been hard to find for a long time. Monumental creations for which both the old craftsmanship and the most advanced techniques are required. Their designs take shape in Francorchamps, Belgium, and are appreciated worldwide.

Vision was designed in 1986 by Pierre Mazairac and Karel Boonzaaijer based on the philosophy that a cabinet, as a composition, should be part of the architecture. Partly due to its maximum flexibility of use and extremely modest design, this design was very successful from the outset with the Dutch manufacturer Pastoe. 25 years later, the compositional possibilities remain unlimited: from a three-dimensional relief to a graphic grid of lines and planes, from a series of sideboards to an architectural landscape of volumes. The book Vision – Room for imagination sketches the story of this young classic.

Futurotextiles – published at the end of 2008 on the occasion of the exhibition of the same name – is more than just an exhibition catalogue.

Surrealism may be best known as a movement within literature and the fine arts, but the influence of this 20th-century artistic movement in other fields should not be underestimated. Even the world of design and contemporary design does not escape a healthy dose of surreal humour.