Dutch Invertuals exhibition presents designers' interpretations of "the circle"
Design collective Dutch Invertuals celebrates "the mother of all forms: the circle" with an exhibition of objects from fragmented mirrors to sculptural ceramics.
The Circle exhibition was initiated earlier this year to mark the tenth anniversary of the experimental design network, and featured objects created by more than 20 designers and studios.
These included a round table made from laminated slices of discarded veneer, a series of fragmented mirrors and a sculptural representation of a solar eclipse.
Shown first during Milan Design Week in April, and again at Dutch Design Week in September, the exhibition was curated by Dutch Invertuals founder and art director, Wendy Plomp.
Each contributor was invited to respond to the theme of the circle, described by the collective as "the ultimate symbol of unity, perfection and infinity".
"In times of division and inequity, the circle stands as an emblem of cooperation and connectivity," Dutch Invertuals explained .
"We need to re-enter its orbit to find what is fundamental in life. Interpreting the elemental form pushes each Invertual to identify what is essential to them."
The responses to this open brief ranged from a series of circular "3D rugs" by Nina van Bart that aim to stimulate the sense of touch, to a wall-mounted artwork by Daniël de Bruin that uses a light source and engine oil to evoke the "halo" effect created by a solar eclipse.
Eindhoven studio Raw Color projected circles of light onto surfaces painted in fluorescent hues, creating luminous compositions of different colours.
Carlo Lorenzetti's Echo Chamber is a ceramic sculpture that creates a closed loop so users can communicate with each other via pipes connecting the ear of one with the mouth of the other.
Belgian designer Bram Vanderbeke casts curved forms that can be combined to create circular structures, while Nel Verbeke presented a miniature shelter in the form of an alcove.
A pair of fragmented circular mirrors that distort the viewer's reflection was exhibited by Eindhoven studio Martens & Visser, and Jeroen Wand showed his round table made from pressed pieces of leftover veneer.
Dutch Invertuals was established in 2009 as a platform to present the works of emerging designers at international design events including Milan's Salone del Mobile and Dutch Design Week.
To date, the organisation has realised 25 exhibitions involving a growing network of over 80 designers. Each exhibition explores a specific theme, with past projects examining topics ranging from mass production to energy consumption.
During Milan Design Week in 2018, the collective teamed up with research studio Franklin Till to present a future vision based on man's relationship to materials in the anthropocene era - the geological period in which human activity is the dominant influence on the earth's surface.
Previous exhibitions have also provided an insight into the creative processes of the collective's designers by showcasing objects from their archives, and invited designers to create physical representations of intangible subjects such as emotions and beliefs.