Today we had a lecture at the academy by Kiki van Eijk and Joost van Bleiswijk. They graduated the Design Academy Eindhoven 8 years ago and are both doing pretty good now. They presented each their work and told briefly about how they started and where are they now, about the money they spend for Milan presentation every year since 2005… Well, sure, some nice pieces, lots of things you couldn’t figure out ,,WHY??,,. In fact lots of things to think about… but maybe telling these things now would be too much gossiping (: . But what I felt the most concerned about was- how the school is shaping our brains! Most of the times you can clearly recognize a DAE student or graduate. There’s this idea about a “Dutch Designer”. And I have a feeling that it is even in the air we breath every day at the academy! Without even noticing it, I have accepted it as well in most of it’s aspects!

Well, maybe there is nothing really bad about it! I just find it curious that we are so willing to put on ourselves this big brand of the school we are studying at… Sure, it has also something to do with paying respect to the ,,one,,who has educated you…

This morning I assisted to a presentation about Olafur Eliasson’s work. Being Islandic, he doesn’t like to talk about his origins and tries no to accentuate the fact that he is a “Scandinavian artist”. I see it as a totally opposite approach to the question. Maybe more honest ? He’s not trying to take advantage to be an artist from a small, in a way exotic country. And he doesn’t need to!!

Kiki and Joost were also talking about the “posh” side of design- when you have to present it. I have the feeling that as an artist- the more known and recognised you are, the less you have to worry about this. I was surprised that being a world famous artist he has on youtube some pretty crazy video that you might think belongs to a 18 years old one. It put a big smile on my face this morning (:, there are some really funny parts! And, in case you don’t know his work- you have wasted your life till now…