Dezeen promotion: Biennale Interieur returns to Kortrijk, Belgium, from 17 to 26 October 2014, with a special exhibition of new work by nine past winners of the event's Designer of the Year award.
Now in its 24th edition, Biennale Interieur is a ten-day celebration of contemporary design, product development and innovation, which is set to take place at the Kortrijk Xpo venue.
In collaboration with brands including Vervloet, Airdiem and Bulo, the group of Designer of the Year alumni will present their latest products on a series of "plug and play islands" at Agora staging in Hall 3.
Participating designers include: Alain Berteau (2006), Nedda El-Asmar (2007), Stefan Schöning (2008), Sylvain Willenz (2009), Bram Boo (2010), Nathalie Dewez (2011), Alain Gilles (2012), Jean-François d'Or (2013) and Marina Bautier (2014).
The prize-winning designers also teamed up to design a 150-seater bar and cafe called Interieur Bistro, which will be open from 12pm until late at Broelschool in Kortrijk town.
This year's cultural schedule – titled SQM: The home does not exist – is curated by architecture critic Joseph Grima, in partnership with his Genoa-based design and research collaborative Space Caviar.
Aiming to explore the essence and meaning of the home as well as notions of domesticity, the programme will see installations, exhibitions and lectures take place across Buda Island.
For the full event listings and to find out how to attend, visit the Biennale Interieur website. Here is more information from the event organisers:
The Biennale Interieur is the place of encounters for experiencing avant-garde trends and the influences which define contemporary design. The event takes place in Kortrijk, Belgium, from 17 to 26 October 2014. The biennial show welcomes over 100,000 visitors to Kortrijk Xpo and Kortrijk town centre, centrally located in Europe within easy reach of Paris, London, Brussels and Amsterdam. It combines a strict brand selection policy with a specially-curated cultural programme of events taking place in a compact location.
Designer of the Year is an initiative of the Biennale Interieur together with Knack Weekend Le Vif, supported by Bozar, Design Museum Gent, Design September and Grand Hornu Images. In the Kortrijk Xpo, the designers will present their latest products in close cooperation with their chosen client brand, in a series of 'Plug and Play' islands. In the Broelschool – next to the Broel towers in the heart of Kortrijk town – nine Designers of the Year have worked together to create the concept of this year's Interieur Bistro.
The nine Belgian Designers of the Year are: Alain Berteau (2006), Nedda El-Asmar (2007), Stefan Schöning (2008), Sylvain Willenz (2009), Bram Boo (2010), Nathalie Dewez (2011), Alain Gilles (2012), Jean-François d'Or (2013) and Marina Bautier (2014) They present a powerful image of Belgian design – individually as designers and together as a team – and will present their work in two different ways.
Designers of the year Plug and Play exhibition:Â working in partnership with one brand each, the nine designers will present their new work within an open landscape of 'Plug and Play' islands, which will form part of the Agora staging in Hall 3 at the Biennale INTERIEURÂ 2014.
Designers of the Year X Interieur Bistro: encounters, experiences and Belgian hospitality are what counts at the Interieur Bistro. Rendezvous at the previous refectory of the Broelschool: could there be a more authentic location? While highlighting the refectory character, the design also flirts with the 'Belgian sense of the absurd.' Imagine a fantastic cantina – honest Belgian dishes, such as stoemp (sausage and mash), game ragout and eel. Experience this moment at the table, and share it with big bottles of Belgian beer, cheese from the region and a speculoos biscuit with coffee. The Interieur Bistro will seat 150 from 12am until late. Visitors are welcome to enjoy a fast lunch, an afternoon coffee, an early aperitif or full evening dinner. Entrance is via the Guido Gezelle path alongside the bridge with the Broel towers.
This collaboration by the Designers of the Year is the second such collective in charge of creating the Interieur Bistro, after the successful first edition with London-based Design Marketo in 2012. www.interieur.be