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Open Call Salone del Mobile 2018
BRIEF
The Open Call Salone del Mobile 2018 is an initiative by the Fund to make it possible for design studios to present themselves during the fair week in Milan. Advisers Marleen Engbersen and Nadine Sterk have made a selection from the 47 proposals. The 11 selected proposals offer quality and diversity, thus satisfying the intention of displaying a wide range of Dutch talent in an international context. The Salone is one of the largest international fairs for furniture and product design and is being held this year from 17 to 22 April.
The selection represents the breadth of the Dutch design sector: when making their selection, the advisors considered the distinctive artistic quality of the work to be shown and the type of presentation, how the presentation in Milan aligns with the development of the designer or the studio and how the presentation fits in with a long-term strategy. The advisors also looked for diversity in the types of projects, presentation spaces and development stage of the design studios. Lastly, they also looked at unique forms of collaboration and group presentations.
selection
The selection includes proposals for application-oriented and detailed designs, such as the Minois Smart Minimalist by Lumiére du Nord. The choice has also been made for more experimental work being shown at an earlier stage of development, such as the presentations by Truly Truly, VANTOT vof, Alissa+Nienke, Studio Belén and Tijs Gilde Studio. Jelle Mastenbroek and Daniel de Bruin opted for a more conceptual installation that focuses on the experience with a social message.
The selected platforms Stichting Chi Ha Paura …?, the Crafts Council and Dutch Invertuals provide the designers involved with an excellent opportunity to present themselves in Milan within a unique group presentation. These platforms each work with a distinctive concept that provides new perspectives on Dutch design with a more outspoken and experimental character. Also in line with this idea is the proposal submitted by Koos Breen and Boris de Beijer, a performative presentation from a collective of young designers who want to sound an unconventional note in Milan with a distinctive type of presentation. The collective consists of Thomas Ballouhey, Boris de Beijer, Koos Breen, Reijnald Kolthof and Lonneke van der Palen.
Milan
The advisers note that the presentations in Milan are increasingly about ‘the experience’. Not just the work being shown, but also the presentation form should attract attention. For international media coverage, a sophisticated presentation and communications strategy is required and a presentation becomes a goal in itself. The advisers express their criticism of this situation, because it can distract attention from good design and finding production possibilities. On the other hand, they recognize that this is an international development and that the Netherlands is able to stand out in this respect. The tendency also offers opportunities for the Netherlands. So they expect the presentations of the selected platforms in particular to attract a great deal of international attention in Milan.
criteria
The submitted proposals were evaluated according to the criteria in the open call, focusing on proposals that stand out in terms of artistic quality, presentation form and strategy. In addition, the preference was for proposals where special forms of collaboration were entered into or which focused on a group presentation, because that generally works well within the context of the fair week. The advisers assessed the extent to which the proposals had been set up consistently and how well they corresponded with the objectives of this open call and the Programme for Internationalization.
working method
The advisers take the quality of the work to be presented and the portfolio as their starting point. They then looked at the presentation proposal, including the planned location in Milan, in combination with the intended strategy and expectations. The intended strategy is in line with the position of the design studio within the field – for instance starters or designers with an established practice. The evaluation took into account whether the intended strategy corresponded with the objective, for instance reaching international press/media or instead accessing commissioning clients to investigate concrete production possibilities. The nature of the work to be shown is also a decisive factor in achieving the objectives. More application-oriented designs require a different presentation, for example in form and location, than designs and installations that are more conceptual by nature or that focus on ‘the experience’, is the assertion of the advisers.
open call
With the open call, the Fund aims to present the excellent quality of the Dutch design sector and to strengthen the international reputation of the creative industries in the Netherlands.
WEBSITE
https://stimuleringsfonds.nl/en/latest/news/selection_open_call_salone_del_mobile_2018/
