After successful editions in 2016 and 2017, Ventura Projects brought 17 Dutch Designers to New York City for the third edition of Ventura New York – The Dutch edition, at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) during NYCxDESIGN.  After the Ventura group’s arrival in New York, they built up their collective Booth 1827 at ICFF, which took place at the Javits Center. Before the fair opened, the designers attended a workshop about the legal aspects of doing business/opening a business as a Dutch designer in the United States.

On May 19th, ICFF opened to professionals and several Dutch designers kicked off the opening with The Dutch Touch panel. The participants were asked to describe Dutch Design and what makes it unique. Designer Rick Tegelaar listed Dutch qualities: innovation, research-oriented, looking beyond aesthetics.  Designer Antonia Wormer believes Dutch Designers ask more questions. When asked to make a chair, an Italian designer might ask about the material or size, but a Dutch designer would ask why do you need a chair? Design brand Cartoni focuses on its effect long-term. That is why Cartoni products are made to be broken down after use. The Dutch stay true to their identity despite expanding. You go back to what your system recognizes, even when going global. Dutch designers are reaching back to old crafts but with new perspectives. This could mean collaborating with others to make an impact. Working with textile manufacturing offers you expertise, utilities, etc. This is how Dutch Design makes the impossible possible.

The Netherlands Consul of New York, Dolph Hogewoning, attended ICFF and visited the Ventura Booth to see the high-quality Dutch Design.

During the next three days, many American professionals visited the booth and complimented Ventura on its collective presence at ICFF. Ventura even won the inaugural Constellation Award for Best Country! Many news outlets, including The New York Times, Azure Magazine and Paper City Magazine, praised the Dutch designers and Rick Tegelaar’s design was featured on the cover of Metropolis Magazine‘s official NYCxDESIGN guide.

On May 21st, Ventura and the Consulate General of the Netherlands in New York hosted a meet and greet with the 17 participating designers. Many American curators, journalists and PR specialists attended this event and got to talk to the designers. The Netherlands Consul of New York, Dolph Hogewoning and Ventura’s Margriet Vollenberg held speeches lauding the designers and listing their success in the US. After this fruitful event, the designers had one more day at ICFF, which was now open to the public. After ICFF closed, the Ventura group shared their initial responses, success stories and experiences gained from bringing their Dutch designs to the US and its market. Despite the cultural differences between the Dutch and the Americans, the overall experience was very positive and could lead to more Dutch designers exploring the US market for international opportunities.

If you want to read more about Ventura and the 17 participating designers, check out our other blog here.