Programma

Wednesday 29 November

09.00 Home visit Bob Segers – Studio Segers Maaseik
Studio Segers is a creative family corporation founded in 1989 by Rita Westhovens (graphic designer) and Wim Segers (product designer). In 2009 their son Bob Segers (product designer) and Marjan Brants (graphic designer) joined the design team. These two generations form a powerful symbiosis of experience and young creative talent. Studio Segers symbolyzes a no-nonsense approach where only sensible and down-to-earth concepts find their realization. By ordening product demands and intuitively processing specific problems they transform ideas into characteristic entities. We will visit the house of Bob Segers, designed by his brother Raf Segers (architect) and stuffed with furniture designed by Studio Segers and produced by companies as Saunaco, Indera, Tribù, Todus, Eco-oh,…

11.00 Glazen Huis Lommel
The Flemish Centre for Contemporary Glass Art is known for its extensive collection of glass art from all over the world.

12.30 Cuchara – Lunch Lommel
Riding his own creative wave, chef Jan Tournier forgets convention and takes you on a journey of purity and essence. A true experience emerged in a dark and cosy setting, Jan invites you to come in and discover the flavour of simplicity. Cuchara has been awarded with one Michelin star.

14.45 Home visit Monx Zonhoven
After his studies Product Design Jan Kuppers launched his first leather accessory collection with Michaël Verheyden and started teaching Design. In 2007 he organized a new department Industrial Design at Kunstschool Genk. In 2014 he received a Henry van de Velde Label for Linea, an outdoorset, created for the label kuppers&wuytens. In 2016 he started Monx coffee with Wilfried Thuwis. Discover this designer-coffee at home of Jan Kuppers.

16.00 Reading Between The Lines Borgloon
‘Reading between the lines’ is a project by the duo Gijs Van Vaerenbergh, a collaboration between young Belgian architects Pieterjan Gijs (Leuven, 1983) and Arnout Van Vaerenbergh (Leuven, 1983). Since 2007, they have been realizing projects in public space together that start from their architectural background, but have an artistic intention.

17.30 Eburon Hotel Tongeren

19.00 Noon – dinner Sint-Truiden
Meet & eat with designers Frederik Boonen (Boonen Design Studio) and James Van Vossel. BDS designs and makes products with true added value for customers and society in general. Creating products is a combination of shaping, renewal and economics feasibility. On these 3 pillars, Boonen Design Studio started 20 years ago. Today, with a variety of innovative thinkers, we stand firmly in our shoes. And we can help each customer with an idea in realizing successful products with real added value. James Van Vossel, graduated with distinction in furniture design at VOMO / Thomas More University College in Mechelen. He founds his own studio JAMES in 2006 and is co-founder of FOX & FREEZE creative cooperation with Tom De Vrieze. Van Vossel creates furniture, products, lighting instruments and fashion accessories while exploring opportunities of materials. He is the first Belgian designer who developed a product for the company Thonet.

…… Eburon Hotel Tongeren

Thursday 30 November

09.00 Recor Home Hasselt
The Hasselt furniture company Recor has been around for 70 years and launched ‘Recor Home’ earlier this month. The brand includes no fewer than five different collections, ranging from classical to the strictly avant-garde. ‘Recor Home’ stands for high-quality design furniture. With these five new product lines, the brand focusses on the entire furniture segment. Art director of Recor Home is up-and-coming designer Frederik Delbart.

11.15 Naais Time Genk
Fatima Ezzaamouri previous created sewing patterns for the Belgische fashion designers like Veronique Branquinho, Christian Wijnants en Dries Van Noten and now runs a creative workspace/atelier where coffee meets fashion.

11.45 Thor Park Genk
Thor is a global development project through which the former mine site of Waterschei is transformed into a hotspot for technology, energy and innovation. Thor is a state-of-the-art technology park of 93 ha with international exposure, where the city of Genk and its partners combine activities in the field of research & development, innovation, business, talent development and urbanisation. We will visit the expo Objet Portrait of designer Roel Vandebeek. With his new concept ‘Objet Portrait’, he captures the identity of nine well-known sources of inspiration in wonderful objects, installations and utensils. These ‘portraits’ combine Roel’s idiosyncrasy with his readiness to listen. And he looks back at 20 years as a professional designer. His work is uncanny and yet familiar.

12.45 La Posta – lunch Genk

14.00 Eco-oh Houthalen
The sorting of plastic household waste is becoming standard behaviour to consumers. That’s why environmentally-conscious cities and municipalities offer their citizens the opportunity to sort their plastic waste. 1.5 million Belgians already collect 15,000 tons of plastic waste via container parks or house-to-house collections. At ECO-oh!, they recycle this waste into sustainable street furniture for public areas. Discover the H-bench of Studio Segers and how it is made.

15.00 Home visit Linde Hermans Houthalen
Linde Hermans started her own designstudio in 1999. She has been designing furniture, shoes, jewellery and fabrics ever since. On commission as well as for her own label ‘Rode Schoentjes‘. She designs for Indera, Ambiorix, Studio Piet Stockmans and worked on social design projects like Vollebak Vennestraat.

16.15 C-mine Genk
In the area of the former Winterslag mine, the city developed C-mine. C-mine aims to stimulate creativity by offering an exciting mix of activities which can be found in four sectors: college education in creative professions and valorisation of academic knowledge in economic and social applications, creative economy, artistic creation and presentation and creative recreation. C-mine expedition starts in the C-mine site’s Energy Building. First you descend to 6 metres where you discover several surprising installations. Famous Belgian artists such as Stijn Meuris and Pascale Platel have created unique stories about the mine in combination with creative image projections.

17.15 Studio Piet Stockmans Genk
For its artistic porcelain, Studio Pieter Stockmans combines traditional craft production with a contemporary experimental approach. The designers are constantly exploring the limits of the material. The studio is at C-Mine, a former mine terrain in Genk, and is the Belgian specialist in designs in hard porcelain. Pieter Stockmans started his career as a designer for Mosa in Maastricht in 1967. He founded Studio Pieter Stockmans 20 years later. Pieter has passed on his fifty years of knowhow and love of the material to his daughter Widukind, who has managed the studio since 2007. They continue the exceptional tradition of craftsmanlike hard porcelain in the studio together with a team of six. Frank Claesen has been designing there since 1999. In 2012, Linde Hermans also developed her first design for the studio. Each of these designers created a limited edition of 30 specially for the occasion.

18.30 Terhills Hotel check-in Maasmechelen

19.45 Restaurant U dinner Genk

…… Terhills Hotel Maasmechelen

Friday 1 December

09.00 Kreon Opglabbeek
Kreon is a trendsetting lighting manufacturer situated in Opglabbeek which approaches lighting from an architectural perspective. Kristof Pycke is the art director since 2005. He graduated with a master’s degree at Henry van de Velde Institute in Antwerp in 1995.

10.00 Il Granito Genk
Il Granito was founded in 1994 by Barbara and Vito Rizzi. Their artisan skills were locally recognized as only the highest level of quality. In 2006 their son, Angelo Rizzi, followed the path of his parents and joined the firm, taking it far outside the Belgian borders. Il Granito continues to produce locally – they work for Michaël Verheyden – whilst completing projects all over Europe, America and Russia.

10.45 Michaël Verheyden Genk
Born in 1978 in Genk, Michaël Verheyden studied industrial design at the Media & Design Academy in his hometown, earning a Master’s degree in 2001. Between 1998 and 2002, Verheyden was a model for fashion designer Raf Simons and did some design work for his label. In 2002, Verheyden launched his own line of fashion accessories; at the time, he was best known for his handbag designs, which have included collaborations with other brands, such as Rick Owens. In 2009, Verheyden broadened his scope to encompass home accessories and furniture. He works together with his wife, Saartje Vereecke (born in 1975 in Leopoldsburg, Belgium), out of a brick home-studio in Genk. Vereecke trained as a painter, and worked in the textile industry before joining the studio. Verheyden’s aesthetic embraces simple geometric forms, minimalist lines, expert craftsmanship, and rich, quality materials—leathers, linen, bronze, brass, marble, and the like. His home collection ranges from candlesticks and vessels to seating and objets d’art. He makes many of his design prototypes himself and works closely with expert craftspeople for the final production. All objects are finished, assembled, and packaged in the Verheyden workshop. Also, notably, bespoke leather baskets are hand sewn in-house.

12.00 Bokrijk BKRK lunch Bokrijk
Under the title Branded by Bokrijk (BKRK), the Open-Air Museum of Bokrijk is about to begin a major renovation project. For many years, we have supported the development of skills related to handicrafts, techniques and their applications in the museum. BKRK is our way of demonstrating and supporting the contemporary relevance of all this expertise. Why the name ‘Branded by Bokrijk’? Originally, branding meant placing a brand somewhere as proof of ownership, authenticity or quality. In addition, it also has the figurative meaning of placing a claim on something. Branding is a testimony to the pride of the artisan. Moreover, Bokrijk is a strong ‘brand’ in in itself.

14.00 Wanderful city Hasselt
Explore the City center of Hasselt with shops like Donum, Wearable Stories, Jade and Alley Gallery.

15.30 Yup Hotel check-in Hasselt

16.00 MIA-H Hasselt
On the banks of Hasselt’s blue boulevard, MIA-H – an incubator for fashion & accessories – offers young, innovative companies the opportunity to grow into worthy players in our sector. MIA-H aims to connect with fashionablesouls and working mates to create a lively and tangible (net)work(space).

16.30 Wanderful.design launch event Hasselt
After work launch event of Wanderful.design.

…… Yup Hotel Hasselt

Bloggers

Byron Hawes (CA) is extremely well travelled. The Toronto-based travel writer and designer went to high school in Tokyo and worked in foreign affairs at the UN. He is co-founder of I-V, a boutique architecture and design firm; was previously a consulting Editor at Architectural Digest China, Greater China Editor for BlackBook Magazine, and a Contributing Editor for both HighSnobiety and Flofferz, as well as contributing to publications including Monocle, Wallpaper, Hypebeast, Coolhunting, and Azure, amongst others.

www.instagram.com/cottonrazorblade
www.twitter.com/byronhawes

Elisabetta Rizzato (IT) is an Italian architect and interior designer, working on residential and commercial projects with her studio ER INTERIOR//DESIGN, and passionated about graphic design, web and photography. She created her Italian design blog ITALIANBARK four years ago, with the initial aim to collect all her finds and inspirations from her travels, work and from the net in one website, She even created a special Monday coloumn dedicated to Made in italy. She is well travelled, studied and worked in Paris and London for a while before setting up her home near Venice.

www.instagram.com/italianbark
www.facebook.com/italianbark
www.italianbark.com

Sarah Akwisombe (UK) isn’t shy about her roundabout entry into interior styling. A singer songwriter, via a career in marketing and content, lead to her setting up her own blog to document the renovation of her first home. When push came to shove, she decided to work full-time for herself and the interior styling world is all the richer for it. Sarah’s warts and all writing style has gained her a readership of over 10,000 people a month. She has an eye for eclectic style, geometrics, brass and statement prints finished off with a dash of Nike air max.

www.instagram.com/sarahakwisombe
www.facebook.com/sarahakwisombeblog
www.sarahakwisombe.com
www.youtube.com/user/Sarahakwisombe

Riikka Soini-Ferraguto (FI) is a Finish designblogger married to an Italian and based in Germany. She’s a multilingual communication professional, MA from the Helsinki University with studies in Italian and English philology, Film and TV research and Communication sciences. She did her first work career as a subtitler for the Finnish television, specializing in lifestyle and design shows and at the moment she is studying interior design. She even works as an agent for three design textile companies. Her blog the Ex-minimalist is part of the Lifie-group, the biggest blog portal in Finland for interior and lifestyle blogs.

www.instagram.com/exminimalist
www.facebook.com/exminimalist
exminimalist.blogspot.fi

Ingeborg van Lieshout (NL) works with design as a freelance designjournalist and copywriter. Her writings are published in Wallpaper*, DAMn, Frame, Mark and De Ingenieur. She’s been a – the – designblogger for Bright.nl since 2005, the start of the online magazine that reaches out to more than half a million readers. Ingeborg is specialised in Dutch Design and she has this thing for green design, superuse, architecture, city dynamics en innovations of many kinds.

www.twitter.com/grnlghtdstrct
www.bright.nl/ingeborg-van-lieshout

Photographer Renaat Nijs, coming man and masterbrain behind www.dekleinering.be, works as a freelancer for De Standaard Magazine and Het Belang van Limburg. His eye and camera will document the blogtour for meta-communication, providing both bloggers and participating partners with enough professional footage.

www.renaatnijs.be
www.instagram.com/renaatnijsmedia/

Lorenzo Veppi will vlog his way throughout this tour. In that way anyone can experience the tour, from design-addicts to design-nitwits. Lorenzo, born and raised in Genk and now studying in Mechelen, is working his way up as an upcoming content-creator and online influencer.

www.lrnz.be
www.instagram.com/veppilorenzo/