Through the end of August, the Museum of Arts and Design is hosting a weekly evening of good drinks, food and art on Thursdays starting at 5:00 PM. Big fans of pay-as-you-wish admission to museums, the Inhabitat team went on the first night. As we wandered around the museum, we were easily enamored with the objects on display. And then we wondered — in an eco-world, are these objects responsible? What about functionality? Is creating …
We’ve waxed lyrical many times about our love for Dutch design, and no organization better represents the idea of ‘Dutch Design’ than world famous Amsterdam-based collective Droog Design. So you can imagine how excited we were when we got wind of the fact that Droog was planning to open up shop here in New York City.
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In a bid to creatively recycle waste materials, London auction house Phillips de Pury & Company has partnered with Adventure Ecology to invite a list of international artists, designers and architects to “up-cycle” the auction house’s waste catalogues and packaging into new habitats for the declining numbers of bird, bat and bee species in urban environments.
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Chris Kabel’s ‘Shadylace’ Parasol
Tonight at the Museum of Arts and Design in New York, o2NYC will host an open forum on the always impressive Dutch design force Droog. Known for their engaging, innovative, and endearing designs that often speak to issues of sustainability, Droog has consistently produced objects that are both thought-provoking and functional.
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This morning we’ve been discussing the environmental friendliness of Dutch design. Like Tejo Remy’s rag chair (shown above), a lot of Dutch design uses reappropriated objects and recycled materials, challenging users to think about waste, materials, and consumption. However, very few Dutch designers approach their work from the framework of environmental activism. Instead, what seems unique to Dutch design is a passionate concern for engaging the user emotionally and intellectually. It is, in fact, this concern for human interaction which makes much of Dutch design so engaging – and what often also makes it eco-friendly by default.
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What is it about the Dutch and design? Why is it that most witty and thought-provoking designers these days all seem to be coming out of the Netherlands? Tord Boontje, Jurgen Bey, Hella Jongerious, Droog… Its hard to put a finger on exactly what it is that unites these different designers ? but there seems to be a certain playfulness to Dutch design which makes it uniquely compelling.
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Greentea Design sells
exclusive Asian-inspired
contemporary
furniture, kitchen
cabinets and antique pieces from China, Korea and Japan.
Their furniture is crafted
from salvaged woods
that were reclaimed from
throughout Asia.
