It's that time of year when the winners of the Henry van de Velde Awards are announced. Since 1994, these awards have recognized products, projects, services, and systems by designers and companies from Flanders that use thoughtful design to positively impact the economy, environment, and society.
A professional jury recently selected winners in eight categories: Business Innovation, Consumer, Crafts by Bokrijk, Design Research, Environment, Graphics, Habitat, and Spaces.
This year's selection includes some noteworthy designs. In the Business Innovation category, the Caretool by S!MPLR S!MPLR stands out. This lightweight, durable tool combines essential items for caregivers - scissors, ampoule opener, ruler, magnetic key, bottle opener, and clamp - in a compact, user-friendly form.
Also in this category, the Open Access Breast Couch by Max Schoepen and Radion-D provides a positioning platform for chest radiotherapy that allows patients to lie on their stomach for more precise radiation delivery.
Eco-friendly designs are also featured: the Verde KinetiCore by Lazer Sport is a bicycle helmet that minimizes material use by reducing components.
Seventy percent of the components are recycled, and the entire helmet can be easily disassembled and recycled as no glue is used (this design could inspire the fashion industry to adopt similar sustainable practices, especially for accessories; so far experiments to eliminate glue especially from shoes haven't been that successful yet, but there are researches in that direction…).
In the Habitat category, there is eco-friendly tableware made from discarded plates, which preserves materials and reduces energy consumption.
Some products were included in more than one category. The Gent Waste Brick for DING by BC materials was recognized in both the Design and Environment categories.
This brick, set to be used in the new wing of the Design Museum Gent, is made from lime, sand, white cement, and 63% raw materials sourced from Gent's waste streams, including crushed concrete and construction glass. The production method avoids traditional firing; instead, the bricks are pressed, cured, and dried.
In the Graphics category, the Safer Streets light installation by Mutant, styled like classic Christmas lights, addresses and raises awareness towards street harassment targeting women.
Tosca is another standout in this category: at first glance this innovative book by Jelle Jespers appears blank, but it hides a novel within a collection of poems, accessible by cutting open the pages. The chosen typography, paper, and techniques align perfectly with the book's narrative.
Architects instead will be drawn to spatial projects like 019, selected in the Space category. This transdisciplinary platform, collective and building encourages experimentation, collaboration, and interaction between disciplines, in particular architecture, graphic design, and visual art.
The "Crafts by Bokrijk" category is particularly interesting for fashion and textile designers. One of the winning projects, Al Khat by Gillis & Aniss, is a multifunctional textile inspired by the haïk, a traditional Moroccan garment and interior design object.
The design, crafted from Belgian wool spun at an artisanal mill and woven on industrial Flemish jacquard looms, reflects the designers' Flemish and Moroccan heritage. The pattern, resembling a deconstructed barcode, comments on overconsumption and symbolizes a link between crafts and industry. This project aims to revive the local wool industry and prevent wool, a valuable material, from being incinerated due to overseas competition.
Flora Miranda's IT Pieces project explores instead the intersection of data, technology, and textiles.
Since her master's collection at the Antwerp fashion academy in 2014, Miranda developed an interest in quantum physics and data, wondering how she may have connected these themes to the world of art and fashion.
Miranda combined digital innovation with traditional methods, using machine learning, 3D printing, laser cutting, weaving, and embroidery to create clothing that narrates stories and demonstrates how technology can reshape fashion.
The starting point for the designs included in the IT Pieces project is the gathering of data: designs range from embroidering data onto tulle to sublimating data insights about employees and customers into prints.
Other designs draw inspiration from hashing algorithms and the data underlying the Standard and Poor's 500 (S&P 500), a stock market index tracking the stock performance of 500 of the largest companies listed on stock exchanges in the United States.
Miranda's designs also include generative artworks translated into woven textiles, 3D-knitted designs, and experiments involving physical research inspired by Myrrha (Multi-purpose HYbrid Research Reactor for High-tech Applications), the world's multi-functional first research reactor powered by a particle accelerator. The aim of Miranda IT Pieces project is to demonstrate that programming is a creative tool and that it can be seamlessly integrated with fashion, transforming seemingly mundane, dry, and uninspiring data into visually striking and conceptually rich creations.
While the Henry van de Velde Award winners have been revealed, the Gold, Silver, and Bronze Awards for each category will be announced in January. Additionally, recipients of the Lifetime Achievement, Young Talent, Company, Ecodesign by OVAM, and Public Gold Awards will also be recognized. Public voting for the National Lottery Gold Award is open until December 19, 2024 at henryvandevelde.be
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