At Object Rotterdam Dutch designer Kiki van Eijk exhibited a table laid with new pieces she has created for Dutch glassware company Royal Leerdam Crystal, cutlery manufacturers Koninklijke Van Kempen and the Audax Textile Museum Tilburg.
Called Table-Palette, the installation included table linen based on a series of sketches and water-colours of fish, plants and vegetables by van Eijk, stainless steel cutlery with scalloped handles, a series of glassware and a collection of crockery with raised imagery applied to the surface.
The project will go on to tour the Audax Textile Museum Tilburg in the Netherlands, the Salone del Mobile in Milan, Italy, and Leerdam Glass Days at Royal Leerdam Crystal, also in the Netherlands.
In contemporary dining culture one encounters worlds of difference. From here to Timbuktu, masses of people jab little plastic forks into the trademark red and yellow cartons, while experiments in molecular gastronomy are served on specially designed crockery that results in an other aesthetic immersion reserved for the happy few.
In the Total Table Design project Dutch designers Scholten & Baijings and Kiki van Eijk present their visions for the art of dining. Total Table Design presents table linen, glassware, crockery and cutlery.
To realize the designs, the Audax Textile Museum Tilburg (table linen), Royal Leerdam Crystal (glassware) and Koninklijke van Kempen & Begeer (cutlery) joined forces. These Dutch institutions and businesses share a passion for traditional craftsmanship. They regularly work in conjunction with a select group of designers from the Netherlands and beyond to stimulate experiment and innovation. The crockery the designers developed at Cor Unum and at the European Ceramic Workcentre (EKWC) in Den Bosch.
Royal Leerdam Crystal is the design arm of the Leerdam-based glassworks that was established in 1878 and is steeped in tradition. The firm produces a wide range of household and decorative glassware, realized by artisans or mechanically. Since the start of the 20th century, the factory has commissioned artists such as Berlage, De Bazel and Lebeau in order to offer an aesthetically superior assortment to its customers.
Over the last few years the company has been working with a diverse group of upcoming and established designers and artists, who contribute to defining the very character of Royal Leerdam Crystal. In 2009 Royal Leerdam Crystal merged with De Porcelyne Fles.
Koninklijke van Kempen & Begeer (VKB) has a profile defined by a range of products for the ‘world of fine dining’. Based in Zoetermeer since 1985, the company’s history can be traced back to 1789, when Johannes van Kempen established the enterprise. Van Kempen merged with Begeer to form ‘Koninklijke van Kempen en Begeer’ in 1960.
The company is proprietor of the brands Keltum (cutlery and table accessories), Gero (cutlery, pans and cookware), BK (pans and cookware), Q-Linair (pans and cookware) and RoyalVKB (food-related lifestyle products). In 2009 Koninklijke van Kempen en Begeer merged with De Porcelyne Fles. In recent years, Koninklijke van Kempen & Begeer has collaborated with renowned designers including Gijs Bakker and Ineke Hans.
Bearing the new name of Audax Textile Museum Tilburg from 2008, the Textile Museum was established in 1958 and has been based at a former Tilburg textile mill, a listed monument, since 1986. The Audax Textile Museum Tilburg presents itself as a unique and creative ‘working museum’. In the TextileLab, an integral part of the museum, artists and designers can have their designs realized on computer-controlled machinery under the supervision of textile specialists.
In 2010, the ’set tables’ by Scholten & Baijings and by Kiki van Eijk will be presented at various locations.
- February 13th until March 21st, 2010 in Audax Textile Museum Tilburg (NL)
- April 14th – 18th, 2010, Salone del Mobile, Milaan (I), Undai Galleries
- June 25th – June 28th, 2010, Leerdam Glass Days, Royal Leerdam Crystal (NL)
Via: Dezeen.com
