Fourteen designers on display

The museum shows the fourteen candidates for the Rotterdam Design Prize 2007: Couturelabel Marga Weimans, Inside Outside, Irma Boom Studio, KapteinRoodnat, Koninklijke Tichelaar Makkum, MattonOffice, Philips Design, Ranj Serious Games, Strange Attractors Design, Studio Demakersvan, studio Makkink & Bey, Studio Joris Laarman, Thonik, Marije Vogelzang.

As these designs and products were radically different from each other and also greatly varied in size and number, I figured it would be best to start with a single type of base and from there to develop an ‘island’ for each of the nominees. These islands consisted of a wooden crane from which all sorts of things could be suspended and a plateau that was linked to it and that could be either long or short, placed high or low, depending on the quantity and nature of the products.

As a spatial image the island could accommodate both extensive, lively presentations and smaller, modest ones. The island were distributed casually across two rooms, with ample space between them, creating a lively image that ensure equal attention for all nominees and made a good starting point for the members of the jury to make their choice.