Chimney potsAt the centre of the main exhibition space is a display of the Mitate lamps, which were designed following a trip to Japan and incorporate references to flags used to identify different clans of Samurai warriors. Chuugi Black Hole. Related story: Marcel Wanders retrospective opens at the Stedelijk Museum
«Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen is one of the best platforms for designers in the Netherlands so it’s a great honour to be invited to show a survey of our designs here,» Wieki Somers told Dezeen. Several of Studio Wieki Somers’ works are included in the museum’s collection and in 2008 the designers created a permanent cloakroom for the museum comprising a circular pulley system that hoists visitors’ belongings up to the ceiling of the foyer. We make the ordinary extraordinary in a subtle way.»
Other pieces on display include a woven carbon-fibre lamp designed for Galerie Kreo in Paris and a series of chimney pots created for a housing development in the town of Hoofddorp, which are based on chimneys found on English buildings from the Tudor period. The studio is known for creating fantastical versions of familiar objects through the unusual application of materials and manufacturing processes. Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam is hosting an exhibition of work completed by Studio Wieki Somers over the past decade, including a collection of lamps based on sixteenth century Japanese Samurai flags (+ slideshow). «Collective memories play an important role in how people relate to objects.»
HighTeaPotA book detailing the studio’s research themes and design approach has been published by JRP Ringier to coincide with the exhibition, which runs until 11 January 2015. Photograph by Fabrice Gousset»The panels create a serene atmosphere and function as dividers,» said Somers. Photograph by Elian Somers»The inherent qualities of particular materials contribute to the meaning of our works but we also believe that associations and historical references have their place in the contemporary everyday,» added Somers. One of its most recognisable works is the HighTeaPot, designed in 2003, which combines a porcelain teapot in the shape of a pig’s skull with a tea cosy made from the fur of a water rat. Merry-Go-Round Coat Rack. Photograph by Fabrice GoussetThe lamps are separated by fabric panels produced with support from textile firm Kvadrat, which are suspended from the ceiling and stitched together using different embroidered patterns to enclose wooden strips arranged in striped patterns. Bellflower.
