Hands on! Dutch Design in the 21st Century

Press release:

The most important export products of the Netherlands are no longer cheese, tulips or maybe even soft drugs. No, it is Dutch Design! Dutch Design is recognised, acknowledged and imitated all over the world. It is adventurous, opinionated and well thought-out. Dutch Design in the 21 century offers an up-to-date overview of current design and appears this week at publishing house WBOOKS.

In the 21st century many of the famous Dutch Designers fabricate their designs and products in their own workspace, often in limited editions. This individual way of working enables them to take an experimental, sometimes even critical stance.

Dutch Design in the 21st Century: Hands on! gives an insight in the intellectual exploration and daily routine in the workspaces of Joost van Bleiswijk & Kiki van Eijk, Aldo Bakker, Maarten Baas, Joep van Lieshout, Christien Meindertsma, Studio Makkink & Bey, Joris Laarman and Daan Roosegaarde.

This richly illustrated book  explores how the 21st century Dutch Design re-evaluates craftmanship and experiments with new digital production methods – and while doing so,  investigates new boundaries between art and design. Increasingly the eye is focused on designers to give a reaction on welfare differences, environmental pollution and commodity scarcity. Therefore, the critical and investigating Dutch Design has a major role to play in the shaping of the future. An extensive interview with Renny Ramakers, director and founder of ‘Droog Design’– the design platform which can be seen as the beginning of the current success of Dutch Design - makes this publication complete.

Journalist Jeroen Junte is a design critic for the Dutch newspapers de Volkskrant en Het Financieele Dagblad en designmagazines like Eigen huis & Interieur and Frame Magazine.

• Author: Jeroen Junte
• Photos: Maarten Schets
• Art direction: Hansje van Halem

• ISBN 978 90 891 0297 3
• Price : € 49,50
• Size: 280 pag., 24 x 30 cm
• Illustr.: 400 in color
• Edition: hard cover
• Language: Dutch and English

Via: WBOOKS.com