Design is not one-off art!
The "Fighting the box" design exhibition is being held in Brussels' old power plant. According to Fabienne Dumont, art director of the Centrale électrique, it's a very appealing place to discover Belgian designers.
The design exhibition "Fighting the box" is currently taking place in Brussels' old power plant. Why is that?
Brussels' Centrale électrique on Place Sainte Catherine was the capital's original power plant. It was built between 1901 and 1903 and operated through 1930. The Centrale électrique then became the Centre for Contemporary Art of the City of Brussels.
The rooms were home to woodworking, metalworking and other workshops until December 2005. Starting in mid-February 2006, work began to turn the Centrale électrique into an attractive building for exhibitions and a centre to promote the contemporary and international image of Brussels. The “new” Centrale électrique premièred on 22nd June 2006 with an exhibition called “ZOO, de l’animal dans l’art contemporain”.
The exhibition "Fighting the box" opened in June 2010, a month before the start of the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union...
The exhibition runs from June through October and fits perfectly with the Belgian Presidency. We wanted to give the 20 Belgian designers a great deal of freedom and include the exhibition in the larger 2010 “Design September” festival. We have organised a meeting with Jeunesse et Arts plastiques, the two curators of the exhibition and three designers for October 2nd at 3 pm. We are trying to reach out to as many different audiences as possible, both in Belgium and internationally.
"Fighting the box"?
First, there is the notion of time: the time during which the designer conceives the object in their workshop; then when it is "out", exhibited in a gallery or an art centre; and lastly when the product is marketed and finds its way into homes.
Second, I like the idea of travel for the works and the exhibition. They will be represented by six designers at the Atelier national de Design in St Etienne, France at the end of November. Other designers may head off to Antwerp. This evokes the idea of objects in motion. The exhibition becomes itinerant.
Is the transformation of a power plant into a centre for the arts unusual?
Not at all! Many power plants around the world have been turned into art centres or museums. One example is the centre for contemporary art in London. These industrial buildings are rediscovered and given a new life...often a very original one!
And today, it's design?
To really settle into the contemporary spirit, we wanted the Centrale électrique to be open to both design and applied arts. "Fighting the box" is the first design exhibition. We believe that design and applied arts are two different facets of contemporary art. We worked with two external curators, Giovanna Massoni and Dieter van den Storm who proposed this project.
The originality of the exhibition resides in the correlation between creative approach and industrial production...
That's true, it's a very special exhibition in which 20 designers illustrate the process of creation that takes place before a work is made: creative production, product design, research, etc. and also the constraints they face during the process of creating their products. We present furniture and more mundane objects such as lamps, vases and glasses.
Next, there are also contacts with large Belgian and international companies for industrial production. Belgian designers are gaining ground in the international market and many of their objects are already in shops. The Centrale électrique is a centre for contemporary art so we always try to maintain a tight link between design and the artistic dimension.
So pieces are already being marketed?
Yes. For example, some people may have already come across Lucille Soufflet's exceptional bench in a public place. The bench is produced in St Etienne in France. Alain Gilles' Big Table is already in some homes and is enjoying great success as are the glasses designed by Charles Kaisin for Val Saint Lambert. People can know them without having been to the Centrale électrique! Industrial production makes the "Fighting the box" exhibition even more original... This is really the art of design.
The designer is an artist and more...
The designer artist is a designer first! They don't necessarily design a one-off work the way a plastic artist does (painting, sculpture). The intent to distribute and commercialise was already there at the beginnings of design in the early 20th century. Designers made it possible for people to have beautiful and practical things in their homes. They sweep into our daily lives and are also present in the public arena, in buses, parks and the metro. All spaces are open to designers. Paradoxically, the designer is also part artist. In the end, their works are relatively expensive.
Which work has been most successful in your opinion?
Visitors have been quite fascinated with the magical aspect of Vincent van Duysen's light beams. His luminary design is manufactured from crystals that are very reminiscent of water and ice. The work is magnificent, nearly magical. Danny Venlet's water-bed also draws the public's attention. It raises questions about the way it was made... And tables and lamps are always interesting. The originality of the exhibition can also be seen in the preparatory sketches found on each designer's "box". And in the small models and prototypes. They provide a better understanding of the designer's approach, the base idea. There is also Bram Boo who was named designer of the year. This was a very nice acknowledgement for us, and even more so for him.
Any ideas for another exhibition?
The next exhibition will be held from October 22nd through October 31st. It will be based on applied arts. The project revolves around "motors brussels" and it will host the works of young designers from the La Cambre design studios. A hundred or so silhouettes will be presented, dressed by first and second year fashion students. The stopping-off point will be the first three days of the "motors brussels" circuit.