Dutch Talent in Group Exhibition ‘Design Transfigured / Waste Re-Imagined’ at Georgetown University Art Galleries

Fransje Gimbrère, Standing Textile(s), 2019. Recycled Polyester braided yarns. Photography by Ronald Smits.

Thu, Oct 3 - Sun, Dec 15 2019

Georgetown Univeristy Art Galleries - Washington Embassy Region

About Design Transfigured/Waste Reimagined

Design Transfigured/Waste Reimagined will open at Georgetown University Art Galleries on October 3rd, 2019 and will be on display until December 15th, 2019. The exhibition will recognize a fresh approach to addressing the current state of our depleted and polluted environment; an extreme and inventive kind of upcycling. In a religious context, transfiguration is “a complete change of form or appearance into a more beautiful or spiritual state.” Waste is overtaking natural resources, but the 30 pioneering international designers and studios in this exhibition consider it a resource to reclaim and radically transform into useful products, providing a new direction in design. A number of Dutch designers and studios participate in Design Transfigured/Waste Reimagined.

Studio Nienke Hoogvliet ©

There are over 40 works being presented in the Maria & Alberto de la Cruz Art Gallery and the Lucille M. and Richard F. X. Spagnuolo Art Gallery. The works are diverse but are all focused on sustainable design. Designer Liselore Frowijn, along with Italian designer Laura Strambi, made a metallic fabric out of pineapple detritus. The designers use the material to design sustainable fashion. Designer Daan Roosegaard filled his “smog free ring” (pictured below) with compressed smog particles. Simón Ballen Botero extricates pollutants from groundwater sullied by the gold mining industry in Colombia to create gleaming patinas on glass vessels. Dutch Nienke Hoogvliet harvests toilet paper from the sewage system that she reworks into furniture. These are just some of the Dutch designers that will be featured in the exhibition, but if you want to know more about all of the designers and their work, scroll down for a list of Dutch participants.

Daan Roosegaarde, Smog Free Ring, 2015. 316L stainless steel, compressed smog, and acrylic glass. | Studio Roosegaarde ©

Studio Agne ©

Majstudio ©

The exhibition is organized by Georgetown University Art Galleries, and guest curated by Ginger Gregg Duggan and Judith Hoos Fox of c2-curatorsquared, an award-winning team known for their provocative curatorial work in contemporary art and design. Dutch Invertuals, an innovative design studio, based in Eindhoven, Netherlands and known internationally for their creative work in the realms of architecture, design, and curatorial projects have designed the exhibition. The exhibition platforms, pedestals, and seating are being fabricated from an innovative building material sourced from textile industry waste and manufactured in Denmark by REALLY; REALLY Solid Textile Board was developed by exhibiting designer, Christien Meindertsma.

Opening reception and panel discussion

Design Transfigured/Waste Reimagined will open with a public reception on October 2 from 6:00 to 8:00 PM. A series of free, multidisciplinary programs ranging from film screenings to public dialogues will expand upon themes of the exhibition. The first program on October 3 at 6:00 PM will be a panel discussion including exhibiting designers, a curator, and moderated by the director of the Georgetown Environmental Initiative and Laudato Si’ Professor of Biology and the Environment, Peter Marra.

There are two locations that the exhibition and events will take place at:

Maria & Alberto de la Cruz Art Gallery
3535 Prospect St. NW Washington, DC 20007

Lucille M. and Richard F. X. Spagnuolo Gallery
1221 36th St NW Washington, DC 20007

Dutch participants:

Studio Agne

Studio Agne works with raw materials that are transformed into useful products that serve human well being and sustainability. The work is often based on historical and sociocultural research. Projects that Agne Studio has worked on in the past include ceramic tiles colored only with raw waste material from industrial metal. The tiles can be commissioned by companies wishing to use them in their buildings, like Jordy’s Bakery in Rotterdam.

Architects of Identity

Architects of Identity use a multidisciplinary approach to their designs so that all aspects of “identity” can be integrated into their projects. While they started out as a graphic design studio, they now have specialized project teams covering many areas of design. For instance, their project ‘Thermodynamics’ project focuses on how excess energy can be converted into natural objects with a unique design.

Simón Ballen

Simón Ballen is interested in material culture and the identity of design; what objects mean in a specific context. He views design as something that preserves and celebrates “diversity, the people and stories behind the making of things.” Simón recently graduated from the department of Man and Well Being at Design Academy Eindhoven with a research project about Gold in regards to the Colombian heritage, history and identity.

Dutch Invertuals

Dutch Invertuals is a group of designers who all base their design on themes derived from contemporary issues, such as overpopulation and consumerism. In recent years, Dutch Invertuals have had many exhibitions on a range of topics.

Studio Formafantasma

Andrea Trimarchi (1983) and Simone Farresin (1980) are Studio Formafantasma, an Italian designers duo based in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. They are focused on product design and explore issues such as the relationship between tradition and local culture, critical approaches to sustainability and the significance of objects as cultural conduits.

Liselore Frowijn

Liselore Frowijn graduated ArtEZ Institute of the Arts as a fashion designer and worked as a freelance fashion designer developing seasonal collections. However, Liselore soon found that there was a lack of sustainability in the traditional fashion system and started her own conscious brand FROWIJN. As mentioned above, she recently worked on creating a metallic material made from pineapple detritus.

Fransje Gimbrére

Fransje Gimbrère is a multidisciplinary designer who graduated from the Design Academy in Eindhoven with a focus on Man & Identity. Her project “Standing Textile(s)”questions the use of textile in textiles in interiors and shows a different way to approach textile in the exterior.

Studio Nienke Hoogvliet

Studio Nienke Hoogvliet consists of Nienke Hoogvliet, who has a background in Lifestyle & Design at the Willem de Kooning Academy and Tim Jongerius, who graduated in Architecture at the Delft University of Technology. Studio Hoogvliet works on projects for various companies, as well as on their own research projects. Thye are focused on materials and design that can contribute to a more holistic world. One of Studio Nienke Hoogvliet’s recent projects focused on using fish leather made from waste in the fishing industry as a substitute for regular leather.

Dirk van der Kooij

Dirk van der Kooij’s designs are innovative and functional. He uses traditional craft in combination with technology in the form of digital robot techniques to create his designs. Dirk van der Kooij is especially focused on the design of unique furniture.

Majstudio

Kelly Maj Gijssen is a product designer with with an affinity for colorful and graphic textiles.

Christien Meindertsma

Christien Meindertsma thoroughly explores the life of products and raw materials in her work.

Kirstie van Noort

Kirstie van Noort graduated the Design Academy of Eindhoven in 2011. She started her own studio in Eindhoven in 2012 and has participated in many exhibitions and research projects. Many of her projects include ceramics. She is currently working as a material researcher for companies.

Studio Daan Roosegaarde

Studio Daan Roosegaarde is a social design lab focused on environmental sustainability. Daan Roosegaarde’s team connects people and technology to improve daily life in urban environments and spark imagination.

Studio Vij5/ Mieke Meijer/Floris Hovers/Studio rENs

Studio Vij5 was set up by Arjan van Raadshooven and Anieke Branderhorst. Together with other designers, they create designs that are functional and have a minimalist aesthetic. Mieke Meijer, Floris Hovers, and Studio rENs are all part of the Studio Vij5 collective.