Sexy news…Droog’s Splendor in the Grass exhibition is extended for another 6 months at the Museum of Sex. More than 15.000 people have visited Droog’s erotic campsite. Curious? See you in Manhattan! Read more here
Make sure to come and check out the House of Furniture. On display for the first time in The Netherlands at Hôtel Droog.
House of furniture by Studio Makkink & Bey
Architecture, furniture and storage all in one. Studio Makkink & Bey took standard sheets of ply with CNC cutting, and created a miniature house to stand within larger interiors of offices, studios and lofts.
With walls of stool, bench and table parts that easily come out and assemble, the functionality and character of the house can be changed as more or less furniture is used. This custom designed house offers endless possibilities as furniture parts suit different functions. Easily adapting to the surroundings. Designed in 2009, and presented in Milan, the House of furniture has proven its relevance thought out the years. Efficiently produced while re-using materials.
At the 4th Mercado Arte Design (MADE) in São Paulo (Brazil), Droog presents ‘From Screw to City’. The exhibition captures Droog’s story that lives through more than 23 years, a design company that has explored all dimensions of human life, from the smallest detail to the bigger picture – from screw to city!
At MADE 2016 Droog is awarded ‘Designer do Ano’ (Designer of the Year).
From Screw to City:
The spirit of Droog is human-centered and people-driven, aiming to develop new tools, scenarios, and business models for the future of design and society at large.
Through three key projects (Construct Me, Open House, and Social City), the exhibition ‘From Screw to City’ demonstrates that this mentality can transform the smallest details in life, such as a screw – to the largest, such as a sprawling city.
The screws, hinges, nuts, nails, brackets and other hardware, from our ‘Construct Me‘ (2015) project, are super functional – in some cases we even extended their function – but they also add value, character and a richer narrative. In our collection you will find nails that reduce the risk of hitting your finger, two way tie wraps, fancy hinges and screws that smile at you. They give flavour to simple DIY work, revive existing furniture and challenge the designer.
With the same mentality that we approached hardware with, we also look at the bigger picture – the beautiful urban diversity of a city. In collaboration with Diller Scofidio+Renfro, we developed the project ‘Open House‘ (2011) in the New York suburb Levittown. The project was expressed as a movement, where suburban homeowners supplement their income to develop a new vocation by offering home-made services and facilities to the public. The project encourages self-inventiveness, offers ideas, and proposes new models for suburban housing which struck a new balance between the private and public realm. Starting with an economic argument for the struggling middle class, the proposal also addresses the challenges posed by urban sprawl and single–owner consumption. The new residential marketplace not only brings more capital and density to the neighborhood, it also increases social cohesion through service exchange.
In continuation of ‘Open House‘ we explore citizens’ dreams , with our ‘Design+Desires’ program (2015-onwards), in order to create their ideal city. We see our city being shaped by the current network society in which people are connected on a various levels, online as well as offline. The result is an ever changing multi-layered city diversity that poses new challenges and urges for innovative solutions. To keep pace with this, we initiate design projects, educational projects, academic research, citizen surveys, exhibitions, expert meetings, debates and lectures.
At the exhibition people are invited to play the Social City poll, which is part of the Design+Desires program. ‘Social City’ is a virtual city to be created around the diversity of dreams and desires of city dwellers all over the world. By taking the poll , people create an avatar and will see the virtual city grow. By becoming a Social Citizen, they can can be part of a continuous dialogue on the future of the city and city life and be part of the design of a speculative city model; the first exercise will be presented at the exhibition.
About Droog:
Co-founded and directed by curator and author Renny Ramakers, Droog is a design company with a mindset that sparks cutting edge products, projects and events globally in collaboration with designers, clients, partners and dreamers.
Droog has been pioneering new perspectives for design and design-thinking since the early nineties. Through critically redefining international notions of luxury, Droog has initiated projects worldwide that twist the status-quo.
From re-dreaming cities; to revolutionary hospitality concepts; Droog is a warm rebel and curious urban change-agent triggering social innovation and new perspectives.
Situated in the heart of Amsterdam, Droog is also a place to visit. In the form of a multi-faceted design emporium called Hôtel Droog, visitors can shop iconic Dutch design and fashion; or sit, eat, drink and think at the restaurant; enjoy carefully-crafted spaces for exhibitions and meetings at the Library, The Grand Space and Courtyard; as well as soak up nature’s wisdom in the Fairytale Garden.
Droog is not only a hubbub of activity during the day (open to the public from 9am to 7pm Mon-Sun) but at night, there is a changing series of events and lectures on offer – each unpacking the topical topics and mattering matters of current affairs, sustainability, fashion and design.
Exhibition details:
The exhibition installation ‘From Screw to City’ (2016) combines the Droog projects Construct Me (2015), Open House (2011), and Social City (2015-now).
At Salone del Mobile in Milan, Construct Me has won the Milano Design Award for Best Tech 2015.
At Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism/Architecture (UABB) in Shenzhen, Social City has won the Peoples’ Choice Award 2015.
At MADE 2016 Droog is awarded ‘Designer do Ano’ (Designer of the Year
Mercado Arte Design (MADE) in São Paulo (Brazil) 9-14 August 2016 details:
– Opening hours: Tuesday – Friday 13h – 21h | Saturday 12h – 21h | Sunday 12h – 20h
– Location: Jockey Club de São Paulo – Av. Lineu de Paula Machado, 1.173 (vallet no numero 1.263) – Cidade Jardim, São Paulo, Brazil
– Tuesday to Thursday Free entrance
– Friday to Sunday: R$ 20
– For the elderly and students: R$ 10
From Screw to City
At the 4th Mercado Arte Design (MADE) in São Paulo (Brazil), Droog presents ‘From Screw to City’, showcasing that Droog explores for more than 23 years all dimensions of human life – from the smallest detail to the bigger picture – from screw to city!
At MADE 2016 Droog is awarded ‘Designer do Ano’ (Designer of the Year)
Mercado Arte Design (MADE) in São Paulo (Brazil)
Opening hours: Tuesday – Friday 13h – 21h
Saturday 12h – 21h
Sunday 12h – 20h
Location: Jockey Club de São Paulo – Av. Lineu de Paula Machado, 1.173 (vallet no numero 1.263) – Cidade Jardim, São Paulo, Brazil
Tuesday to Thursday
Free entrance
Friday to Sunday: R$ 20
For the elderly and students: R$ 10
Droog has been commissioned to redesign the CACAU cultural center in São Tomé. The aim is to contribute to a sustainable socio-economic infrastructure for the island’s cultural center that celebrates art, music, fashion, film and food.
Throughout the project, Droog encourages the local community to participate in the project to further forge a community home. In the coming months, construction for the redesign of the interior of CACAU will take place. Droog is currently holding a workshop on the island to realise an important element for the new interior, a 90-meter long curtain designed specifically for the center’s new look.
Under guidance of textile designer Nikkie Wester, a community of around 25 men and women living on the island are being trained to weave the substantial textile. The newly learned skills and techniques hope to inject fresh economic activities into the community, as well as support the existing island-artisan activities.
The curtain offers CACAU the possibility to divide and/or open the space according to the needs of the center. It will ultimately represent the collective identity of the community, through the stitch of each individual. The artwork is rich in personality and identity and combines visual references of São Tomé’s flora and fauna, made from local non-toxic dyes and materials found on the island (such as banana fiber and pigments from plants and minerals). A poem dear to São Tomé, written by Alda Espírito Santo will lace the bottom edge of the artwork, uniting the piece. The fundamental idea of the collaboration was to recycle and use as many local materials and waste items as possible to realize the project.
The process involves locally handmade tools and looms, with one-on-one weaving guidance by Nikkie. The men and women began with smaller looms for training, and will eventually move to 5 larger looms (working with 3 people per loom) in order to realise the full design.
The training period also involves comprehensive dying techniques, mainly using an ancient tint called indigovera tincture (Indigo). The indigo plant is native to São Tomé however there were no current applications of indigo use as a dying material. The group who will assist in dying process is made up of 5 people, from a small cooperative called Uê Tela based in São Tomé. Other colours used in the CACAU project are a very dark grey/green, green, light green, yellow and pink, which are already being produced by Uê Tela from all natural materials.
The mission of the CACAU center is to enhance and develop cultural enterprise in the community, where even the redesign intertwines this mission in the minutiae of its development. Though the completion of the build is a few months away yet, the spirit of the Center is still very much awake.
Our local man on the scene, Dário Pequeno Paraíso is providing his talents to document the process. Keep up with Droog on social media to follow the process!
all images by Dário Pequeno Paraíso
We’ve got a new video in the Courtyard of Hôtel Droog with tips by ‘Kunstkijken met Ko en Kho’ for the hottest art exhibitions in town and around.
Droog’s Design+Desires team is now partnering with area developer Bloc to develop new projects for the Design+Desires program. We come back soon with more…
Droog is commissioned to redesign the CACAU cultural center in São Tomé. The aim is to contribute to a sustainable socio-economic infrastructure. Therefore 25 local women and men under guidance of textile designer Nikkie Wester will be trained for 4 weeks to weave and dye banana fiber.
Together they make a huge textile for the interior. After completion, they can use their newly learned skills for their own economic actvities and other projects.
On 21 December 2015 Sarriel Taus and Renny Ramakers organized their first dinner with refugees at Hôtel Droog. 35 Dutch guests mingled with 35 refugees from Syria, Irak and Eritrea, christians and moslims.
It was a night full of hearth breaking stories about crossing the Sea in rubber boats, the transit through Turkey, Macedonia and so on, the continuously bombing in their home land – a hairdresser told us that his hair salon had been completely destroyed and while we were eating and drinking, my neighbour at the table received a text message from a friend saying that his house was in between two fires. They showed pictures of their family left behind and they told us about their life in the refugees shelters. For some if them it was the first time to meet Dutch citizens. Their biggest frustration is that they don’t have any money while not being permitted to do any work. They don’t want to keep their hand up. They just want to work, to start an enterprise, to start a new life. And now the only thing they can do is wait. Many of them were eager to learn Dutch and one guest hilariously practiced Dutch proverbs.The 35 refugees were all men.
On 15 February 2016 a second dinner was organized, this time with women only and a few gay men. The atmosphere was totally different. It was again evening full of shocking stories. But we also saw new friendships arise. Afterwards we got very positive feedback from the refugees aid organization. They told us that everyone was enthousiast and that the evening gave the refugees hope and trust.
Social City wins Peoples’ Choice Award at UABB 2015/2016
We (Droog, OSCity, Jan Rothuizen) are happy to announce that our project Social City, which is part of the Design+Desires program, has won the Peoples’ Choice Award at the UABB 2015/2016. The jury stated: ““Symbiotic Village”, “City of Wind”, and “Social City” won public recognition for their creativity, sense of presence and visual presentation through a poll conducted at UABB venues, on the official website and platforms like WeChat, over a period of one month.”
On Thursday April 7, 2016, Renny Ramakers will give a presentation at the Penny Stamps Speaker Series in Ann Arbor (MI). She will talk about her inspiration and work, and Droog’s latest people-centered urban research-and-do program called Design+Desires. Renny will tell something about her fascination with Russian constructivism and De Stijl movement, and how this has influenced on her path and that of founding Droog and its many different projects. The Penny Stamp Speakers Series offers a unique art & design education within the University of Michigan. Focusing on creative practice as an engine for cultural change and innovation.
Thursday April 7, 2016
5.10 PM
Michigan Theater
603 E. Liberty Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48104
The event is free of charge and open to the public.
Nikkie Wester, is a Dutch textile product designer with a great passion for craftmanship and folklore. Her work always follows comprehensive research into cultural traditions, rituals and its origin, which is expressed in experiments with different textile materials. A great part of her designs infuse colour and symbolic references – and we got talked with her about her latest designs – the Fiske Fish Socks, which she designed upon learning about her own family history. www.nikkiewester.com
Fish Socks by Nikkie Wester from Nikkie Wester on Vimeo.
You can purchase the Fiske Fish Socks at the Droog Shop at Staalstraat 7B – now open from 9am-7pm everyday.
Orange Socks (Women’s Sizes): €59,95 – Sizes 36-41
Grey Sock (Men’s Sizes)s: €64,95 – Sizes 41-46
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We talk with Nikkie in an exclusive interview about her latest designs:
The Fiske Fish Socks are very playful, do you often weave play into your designs?My work has always been very conceptual, to keep it light-hearted I use humour. Without a twist, a collection can turn out to be too serious or heavy and therefore unattainable for public.
How long does it take to make a pair of Fiske fish socks?
The socks are knitted by hand, that can be a slow process though the women who do that work very quick. The can make a pair of socks in a day. I admire their knitting skills, they truly master the craft.
What is the name of the knitting technique used in the Fiske fish sock?The socks are knitted in a cable stich. This particular stich was used to make the traditional fishermen attire. By the use of this cable the textile becomes both breathable and insulating, which makes it perfectly suitable for rough weather at sea and therefore very suitable for socks to keep your feet warm
How did you develop an interest in textiles and knitting, and why does it interest you?Textile is a fascinating product because it is inseparable with humanity. It is used from the moment we are born, when we dry nurse our baby’s, until death. Even then we wrap textile around our loved ones before we give them back to the earth.
What kind of textile projects excite you the most? I am fascinated with projects that require textile products that have to do with cultural heritage. This can for example be a research upon a traditional costume or a spatial design meant to unite a group of people.
Do you think the art of knitting is in decline or on the rise based on the growing tech-culture?There is always been research and development considering textile, so also on the craft of knitting. Though at the moment innovation is concentrating more on the development of materials. The century old technique of knitting is tested upon these new materials. That is the beauty of knitting. It is a technique that managed to survive the test of time. Of course this is not without a reason. The possibilities are endless and applicable on almost all materials. So I have complete confidence in the future of knitting.
Finally, the most important question, do you have inspirational pet fish that started this project?Haha, no the design is not that square. The fish socks are developed from a research upon the Dutch textile identity combined with a research upon my own family history. I wanted to make a twist to the fishery and combined it with a photo of my grandfather as a child. On the photo I drew socks with a fin at the end. That was the start of the design, although of course it was still in development. I find it very exciting that the product is now realised and put into production. That is one of the reasons I design.
Renny Ramakers, co-founder of Droog, will be taking part in a major
international Architecture and Design Symposium in Munich, Germany on the
25th of February, 2015 from 16.00 – 20.00.
*About the Symposium:*
As a partner country of MCBW, The Netherlands is the most innovative and
important location for design in Europe. The Symposium „DeUTsCH“ will look
at the differences, similarities and potential synergies of the Netherlands
and Germany with regard to architecture and design.
During two panel sessions three Designer and three Architects from each
country will discuss the following questions:
Does Design and Architecure align differently in the Netherlands than in
Germany?
What are the diverse approaches of a designer and an architect?
How different or similar are they dealing with material and scale?
Where does architecture and design meet?
Read more on the program here:
http://www.mcbw.de/mcbw-2016/programm/liste/detailseite/event/deutsch.html
*Event details:*
When: Thu, 25.02.2016
16:00 – 20:30
Where: Pinakothek der Moderne | Ernst von Siemens-Auditorium
Barer Str. 40
80333 München
The event is in English.
The hardware collection is awarded in the Design:Details category, you can see further information here
About Construct Me!
Our screws, hinges, nuts, nails, brackets and other hardware are super functional – in some cases we even extended their function – but they also add value, character and a richer narrative. In our created collection, you will find nails that reduce the risk of hitting your finger, two way tie wraps, fancy hinges and screws that smile at you. They give flavour to simple DIY work, revive existing furniture and challenge the designer.
You are now invited to come and play the Social City quiz in Hôtel Droog.
Social City is a think tank based on your dreams and desires. Via the quiz you can share how you envision your ideal city life. For example, in what kind of house do you want to live? What would be the view from you Social City house? Do you want animals in your neighbourhood, which ones? What kind of mobility do you wish to use in Social City? What kind of technology do you aspire in Social City? If you answer these and other questions, you will get an avatar designed by Thonik. Together with people all over the world you build the virtual city!
Experts in architecture and city planning discuss your answers on the Social City platform. The objective is to find solutions and opportunities which match your ambitions, needs and dreams and which can be implemented in the existing daily environment. The ultimate goal is to upscale all results towards a larger infrastructure to arrive at a conceptual model for a (partly) self-organizing city.
You can play the quiz at home on the internet, but you are now also invited to play the quiz on the tablet in ROOMSERVICE, the elegant and airy café and tearoom of Hôtel Droog. Sit down at the beautiful Hardworking Desk, play the quiz and enjoy some of the finest homemade recipes or freshly made sandwiches. Our advice, don’t sweat too much!
See you at Hôtel Droog!
Where to play:
Hôtel Droog
Staalstraat 7a-7b
1011 JJ Amsterdam
When to play
Tue-Sun 11am – 6pm
Monday closed
Social City at UABB 2015
The program Design+Desires examines how to link the dreams, desires and needs of citizens to their virtual and real daily experiences. Design+Desires combines the output of social media, active participatory citizen research, technology, and innovative design solutions.
Social City is a first full-scale exercise of the Design+Desires program and is commissioned by UABB for its 2015 architecture biennale in Shenzhen (China). Social City is curated by Renny Ramakers and presents the different steps for the creation of a model for a future city.
Two interactive installations, called ‘Babel’ by architect and computer programmer Mark van der Net, are directly tapping the social media (Weibo and Twitter) in Shenzhen and Hong Kong. We tap this media, because digital technology and social networks have drastically changed city life. With standard statistical methods it is hard to conduct research on this increased fragmented society. Via the social media tapping we can better explore how people are simultaneously connected with each other through the virtual and the real, what they talk about and where they are while using social media.
In Social City we do not perceive citizens as abstractions, for us the diversity of their dreams and desires are pivotal. Therefore artists Jan Rothuizen has taken the digital data mapping as starting point. From this data he selected and contacted people to meet in real life. Based on his encounters with a retired investor, a travel office employee, an Uber taxi driver, and a factory worker, he made drawings of their individual behaviours and desires.
We also capture the dreams and desires of citizens all over the world via the quiz on www.socialcities.org . People are invited to answer questions about their ideal city life. This generates a unique avatar that will have its virtual home in Social City, which is built according to the given answers in the quiz. We invite experts in the field of architecture, urban planning, sociology and economy to reflect on the content generated by citizens and to start a dialogue. We also make visualisations of the results.
The data from the platform will have to result in design solutions, the building stones for the future city. The challenge is to combine all different desires in one city model. Architect office TD did the first exercise, which is based on one of the questions in the quiz: “how would your house in Social City look like?” So far it turns out that most people want to live in a tree hut, a building block or a detached house. But there are also quite a few people who would like to live in a house boat or a mobile home and there are even people who do not want a house at all. TD’s ‘Treehousewaterboatappartmenthammocktower’ is a free interpretation of this diversity of desires, illustrated in a condensed example for one building block. It is no science fiction, but actually tested on technical feasibility.
Social City will be on display till March 1, 2016 at UABB, No.3 Gangwan Road, Shekou, Shenzhen (深圳市南山区港湾大道3号) . See photos here .
Follow Social City on Twitter, Facebook, or sign up for our mailing list to be amongst the first to get the news.
For more information and images: [email protected]