OPENING Wednesday February 1, 2012 6pm
Via Ventura 6, Lambrate, Milan
The exhibition will be open untill the March 31, 2012

Plusdesign presents “Weaving” Traditions, a solo exhibition signed by the Dutch designer Kiki van Eijk, made in collaboration with the gallery Secondome of Rome, NODUS Milan and Bernhardt Design in North Carolina. “Weaving” Traditions weaves the scenery of Kiki’s world, the wires runs through times and places and among the “fabulous” objects which make part of her craftsmanship: an overlap of materials, fabrics, graphics and a layering of past present and future which never fail her passions, feelings and contradictions.

The exhibition will show a preview of different daily uses tapestries called “wallhangings”, the carpet “Savage Flowers” especially designed for Nodus, the “Workshop” sofa designed for the U.S. company Bernhardt Design, made in collaboration with Joost van Bleiswijk. In addition, the collection of seven furniture-sculptures “Cut & Paste” designed for Secondome gallery and the collection of ceramics that made her style unique through the years.

Cut & Paste designed for Secondome gallery – A collection of objects conceived and produced in Eindhoven with various materials such as: ceramics, wood, fabric, metal, mirrors, gold, glass, copper, ropes and colors, all mixed with wisdom and poetry. To design these special artworks, Kiki starts from ordinary objects like chairs, poor or ancient as coaches, contemporary and precious as golden watches.

“Savage Flowers” carpet, designed for Nodus – The designer’s poetry, this time is inspired by the wildflowers that grow around us, between the concrete slabs next to the sidewalks, in every corner of the city. Kiki gathered those flowers right in front of her studio in Eindhoven, and let them dry for a few months, as she used to do when was a child. Her purpose is to show the beauty of wildflowers that grow freely in places where you usually tend to eliminate all forms of uncontrolled natural growth. The rugs are hand-made with the most exquisite knotting and natural materials such as banana, bamboo, silk and linen.

Tapestries “wallhangings” – Farm house, Country house, Town house. The wallhangings are tapestries with different everyday uses that illustrate various types of houses: a farm house, country house and town house, in province or city, which symbolize a tradition that can instill a sense of refuge and safety. These tapestries are soft and warm repositionable blankets: wrapping in a “domestic” stole fabric, make us feeling protected and reassured. The wallhangings are made in yarns and weaving techniques which intensify the feeling of softness and warmth. The theme of this project is a new starting point of Kiki’s future research.

“Workshop” collection for Bernhardt Design in New York – This project arose from the collaboration of Kiki and Joost van Bleisijk, professionally together for the first time, just like in real life. Leading the new generation of Dutch designers, most of their work is based on respect for traditional craftsmanship. Kiki and Joost Workshop became the inspiration for this collection composed by forty textiles and one sofa, especially designed for the company Bernhardt Design New York. This collection has been properly entitled “Workshop.”
Joost has worked on the structural basis, using a variety of materials such as spray cans, brushes, bars of wood, adhesive tape. Kiki, starting from this inspiration, added graphics and overlapped different layers as in her style. The Textile Collection “Workshop” is composed of five different textures in eight colors each: Connect, Stitch, Block, Score and Brush.

Kiki van Eijk
Kiki van Eijk was born in 1978. She graduated cum laude in 2000 at the Design Academy in Eindhoven with the project that made her famous throughout the world “Kiki Carpet”. Her design is profoundly emotional, Kiki finds inspiration in the world of fairy tales and the beauty of the objects which everyday surround her. Her work is easily recognizable for a sweet and playful design, sometimes contrasted by serious and austere lines. She has a great passion for materials and for the layers they are made of: this translates into new and surprising craft techniques with applications never experienced before. Kiki loves producing objects by her hands: this traditional approach could also influence her industrial production. Kiki’s nostalgic design philosophy, combined with her poetic and personal style are translated in a large series of works such as rugs, lighting, furniture, ceramics, glass and luxurious fabrics.
Her creations are exhibited in galleries, museums and exhibitions around the world: London, Paris, New York, Milan, Cologne, Venice, Kuwait, Tokyo, Montreal, Rome, Amsterdam, Basel, Miami, Rotterdam, Brussels, Monaco, Moscow etc etc. Besides her own collection she works on projects for companies and institutions such as Studio Edelkoort Paris, Design Academy Eindhoven, SKITSCH, MOOOI, Ahrend, Royal Leerdam Crystal, BKKC, van Kempen & Begeer, Serax, Brainport Operations, Forbo flooring, Venice Projects, Audax Textile Museum, Zuiderzee museum Enkhuizen and many more.
For 2 years she has been the art director of the Design Academy restaurant “deWitte Tafel”.
Her work is published and sold world-wide. Publications include Wallpaper, Elle deco, Harpers Bazaar, Vogue, de Architect, Icon magazine, Glamour, and The International Design Year Book.