Many creative people, including fashion and interior designers, have been using the Rijksmuseum's Rijksstudio since it became available last year. This online archive comprises thousands of works from the museum collection and offers users the chance to register, access the museum collection and download high-resolution images or sections and details of specific artworks and get inspired by them.
Last year the museum asked international artists, designers and architects to select one work from the collection and create an entirely new piece.
Design group Droog created for example a tattoo inspired by a still life painting by Jan Davidsz de Heem, and, during the latest edition of Milan's International Furniture Fair, Droog presented further pieces that moved from the online archive (including also wallpaper echoing Vermeer and Rembrandt...).
The products were showcased in Milan with a dedicated installation entitled "Rijksstudio m2" and representing a setting for a studio.
Among the products there are also a rubber tablecloth dubbed "Table Skin", and 3D printed "Napkin Rings". The former, by design duo deJongeKalff (Jennifer de Jonge and Roos Kalff), is a silicone rubber table linen embossed with a reinterpretation of the classic embroidery with rectangular shield carved in wood made in the 1500s by Albrecht Dürer.
DeJongeKalff already worked on a white rubber table cloth a while back and that previous project led to this new take on the classic table linen. The duo has previously worked on products that focus on the alienation between material and form, while combining old forms with new techniques. In this case the inverse engraving creates on the table linen a white damask effect, but the material is also durable, waterproof and easy to clean.
Designed by Studio Droog, the "Napkin Ring" is also interesting since it's a polyamide 3D printed pleated collar ruff and it was inspired by a real linen batiste ruff from 1615 - 1635.
The best thing about these projects is the fact that they both move from historical pieces, and reinvent traditional techniques in a quirky and modern way focusing on innovative materials and technologies. Products such as these ones prove that innovation doesn't come from copying the past, but from looking at it with renewed eyes and with a healthy dose of humour as well.
Image credits for this post
1. Print by Albrecht Dürer from the Rijksmuseum archives.
2. Ruff Collar from the Rijksmuseum archives.
3. Table Skin Embroidery by deJongeKalff for Rijksmuseum
Photo by: deJongeKalff
4. Pleated Collar - Napkin Ring by Studio Droog for Rijksmuseum
Photo by: Ingmar Swalue
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