 | |||
|
|||
|
RESUMÉ The Frozen Fountain is a shop/gallery that sells contemporary furniture and home accessories. The Frozen Fountain maintains close contacts with designers from the various art academies in the Netherlands and elsewhere, so that a dynamic collection comes into being as a result. This collection is complemented by a selection of international furniture labels, thus creating an interesting reflection between classics and the work of present-day designers. The Frozen Fountain has also organized many exhibitions, our intent being to visualise a clear symbiosis between idea and final product. The emphasis has increasingly come to focus on installations and commissioned art. Beside the presentation of our permanent furniture collection, installations can be organized more quickly and are therefore more readily aligned with the here and now. In contrast, commissioning art encapsulates the possibility of an in-depth response to a certain subject. HISTORY The start, 16 May 1985. The Frozen Fountain started in the Utrechtsestraat in Amsterdam on 16 May 1985. The basic notion of the founder, Dick Dankers, was to bring designers and craftsmanship together and thus to present an original collection. An unusual specialization developed in the field of lacquer work, where at least 12 coats were applied to achieve a truly smooth surface. Old but unique furniture was restored and given a colour by means of this special lacquer technique. Relocation and new start, 18 September 1992. A new firm was formed in 1992. Dick Dankers went into partnership with Cok de Rooy and together they started a new Frozen Fountain at Prinsengracht 629, in a spacious 625 mtr2 setting. The craftsmanship aspect faded into the background and the accent came to lie on design. The contacts between Cok de Rooy and various art academies gained in importance, plus the fact that - in contrast to other countries - the Netherlands has a strong tradition of self-producing designers. This approach creates an agreeable hotbed of talent. The range comes from all sides and from unexpected sources. The standard collection of furniture is combined with unique objects or limited editions of serial products from designers such as Piet Hein Eek, Richard Hutten, Jurgen Bey, Marcel Wanders, Ineke Hans or Job Smeets. Walls are hung with photography from young talent or established names like Teun Hocks, Ruud van Empel, Anton Corbijn and Inez van Lamsweerde, while carpet designs from Claudy Jongstra or ceramics by Hella Jongerius will be found at other places. COLLECTION Our permanent furniture collection consists of the "great" labels, such as Driade, S.D.R. +, Depadova, Moroso, Edra, etc. The lighting we offer comes from Flos and Artemide among others, and we source home fabrics from Baumann and Pierre Frey for example. This collection is the nucleus around which the shop is organized. CUSTOM-MADE, ART COMMISSIONS Our contacts with the various creative minds enables us to supply bespoke work of the greatest merit, ranging from a colour plan for corporate facilities by Jolanda Muilenberg to a vanity table by the designer Piet Hein Eek or a carpet by Dora Dolz. Our art commissions serve as the illustrations. The art we commissioned from the sculptor Marc Ruygrok, for example, served as a model for his commission from the Beurs van Berlage for a new bar in the restaurant, while the commission to Job Smeets for a wall unit became the model for a bronze table that Job designed for a private home. PIET HEIN EEK Piet Hein Eek is a phenomenon in himself. As a designer, he is seamlessly aligned with typical Dutch designers like J.J.P. Oud, Rietveld or Penaat. He is a formidable constructor and his design language is simple. His work is also recognizable by his original choice of materials, such as scrap timber, leftover aluminium, old doors and window units. Despite his unorthodox ways, he has nevertheless been able to set up a small factory where short series of furniture are manufactured. Everything can be modified or customized, which is why Piet Hein Eek is our most important supplier if custom-design is required. SHOP WITHIN A SHOP We have introduced small dedicated shops within our main shop, for the benefit of a wish to specialize. Claudy Jongstra Claudy Jongstra specializes in felt. Her work is unusual and has therefore already been included in numerous exhibitions in the Netherlands and elsewhere. Various Dutch museums have her work in their collections. On an international scale, her work can be found in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and in the Moma in New York, to name but two. Claudy's fabrics are part primitive, part magic. Some materials resemble long-haired bison hides, and yet there are fragile transparent glass curtains with soft flakes of felt applied to silk chiffons and organzas. Koninklijke Tichelaar Makkum Koninklijke Tichelaar Makkum is the oldest company in the Netherlands (in business since 1594). In addition, it is one of the most famous ceramic concerns in Europe, famous for its vast collection of hand-painted earthenware and tile collection. Tichelaar also works with talented young designers however, like Hella Jongerius, Marcel Wanders and Jurgen Bey, which is why The Frozen Fountain has a Tichelaar shop, emphasizing the work of these designers. Nederlands Textielmuseum The Nederlands Textielmuseum in Tilburg is a national textile museum with a long tradition of commissioning art from designers and artists. These commissions are then executed on the machines present in the museum. This is very small-scale production of course, but of great merit. The Frozen Fountain has an exclusive alliance with the museum and is therefore able to offer a unique collection of woven damask table linen. The designs come from Guido Geelen, Marc Mulders, Henk Schiffmacher, Hella Jongerius, Marcel Wanders, Job Smeets, etc. EXHIBITIONS, INSTALLATIONS, COMMISSIONED ART These activities have given rise to great enthusiasm among the public. They are moments that allow the public to explore and the designers to present, both with optimum effect. |
| 18-09-'92 | Opening exhibition with the artist Peter Klashorst and glass objects from France. These glass objects were unique, being designs by Garouste & Bonetti, Christian Duc, Yamo, Pascal Mourgue and others. |
| 19-03-'93 | Exhibition Albert Geertjes and Gerda Edens. The work of Albert Geertjes might be described as Baroque, but executed with pure and raw materials and thus creating a contemporary image. Gerda Edens exhibits two-dimensional objects with fabric as their basis. Her language of form is simple and her treatment of textiles subtle. |
28-05-'93 | Exhibition in cooperation with Galerie Torch. New work by photographer Jan van der Horn combined with work by Mitsy Groenendijk and Anya Janssen. |
| 17-09-'93 | Exhibition with Edward van Vliet and Eibert Draisma, graduates of the Academy of Industrial Design in Eindhoven. Edward has a futuristic language of form as seen in his furniture designs, while Eibert makes small imaginative robots. |
| 12-05-'94 | Exhibition of upholstered seating elements. Young designers like Piet Hein Eek, Hugo Timmermans, Edward van Vliet, Henk Stallinga, Eibert Draisma and Paola Kalshoven show their thoughts on this theme in prototypes and scale models. |
| 16-07-'94 | Exhibition "Sixties & Beyond". Furniture from the sixties. |
| 11-09-'94 | Exhibition with Tejo Remy and Viktor & Rolf. This was the first exhibition in a series of four subsidised by the Mondriaan Foundation. The theme of this exhibition was furniture and fashion - Tejo with his poetic furniture designs and Viktor & Rolf with fashion designs that were literally and metaphorically fantastic. |
| 12-11-'94 | Exhibition with the theatre group Alex d'Electrique and the designer Henk Stallinga. Henk exhibited pure minimalism, while Alex d'Electrique used brute force with subtlety to give shape to this exhibition. With grateful thanks to the Mondriaan Foundation. |
| 12-05-'95 | Exhibition with Edward van Vliet and Fred Kolman. Edward created futuristic furniture for three life spheres, while Fred Kolman followed the visitor with light, music and sound, using sensors, a lot of software and a beamer. With grateful thanks to the Mondriaan Foundation. |
| 06-10-'95 | Exhibition with designers Hugo Timmermans and Job Smeets, who showed their vision of the future in the form of a 22-metre long photograph (...) plus three furniture objects made from synthetics. With grateful thanks to the Mondriaan Foundation. |
| 08-05-'96 | Exhibition of new furniture from designers Javier Mariscal and Ron Arad. This exhibition was organized in cooperation with the Italian furniture manufacturer Moroso. The exhibition was opened by Javier Mariscal. |
| 02-05-'97 | Home-office. This was an exhibition with a new home workstation. The exhibition was organized with the cooperation of IBM, Vitra and provider Euronet, plus the designer Piet Hein Eek and Finnish designers Teppo Asikainen and Ilkka Terho. |
| 20-09-'97 | Exhibition of designs by Alessandro Mendini, Marco Zanuso, Gio Ponti, Achille Castiglioni, Cinni Boeri, Anna Gili and Mario Bellini. This exhibition was opened by Alessandro Mendini and Anna Gili. |
| 28-08-'98 | Patrick Schols. Patrick exhibits his furniture made of chipboard. Endless sanding and polishing creates the organic forms and a texture that also describe how the furniture has been constructed. |
| 07-05-'99 | Dutch Individuals. The presentation of a selection from the exhibition which the "Dutch Individuals" foundation organized in Milan during the "Salone Int. del Mobile" in the spring of 1999. |
| 28-05-'99 | "Chine de Commande". The ceramist Norman Trapman presents a collection of porcelain which he designed and made himself during one of his study trips to China. As his destination Norman chose the city of Jingdezhen, approximately 500 km from Shanghai. This city has been the centre of porcelain in China for centuries. |
| 09-10-'99 | Claudy Jongstra exhibits together with the photographer Jannes Linders. Claudy presents her felt collection via her "Nąt tom dick and harry" label. Jannes Linders exhibits his series of airport photographs made on commission from Schiphol airport |
| 29-9-'00 | Hidden exhibition. The "Hidden" collection is an initiative by showcase manufacturer "sdb industries bv". sdb literally and metaphorically ensured a creative explosion by asking various designers to make designs for furniture that would be put into production by sdb, if possible. A selection of designers were asked to submit designs, including Christophe Pillet, Ron Arad, Jeffrey Bernett, N2, Kombinat, Richard Hutten, Dum Office and Andreas Weber. This exhibition was opened by Ron Arad. |
| 28-9-'01 | Exhibition of first commissioned work. This commission was given to the sculptor Marc Ruygrok, who made the table "ZEG". ["ZEG" is "SAY" in Dutch] |
| 20-9-'02 | Exhibition "10 years of The Frozen Fountain". Work commissioned from Hella Jongerius and Piet Hein Eek. Hella made a series of lamps and Piet Hein - of course - a unique cupboard. |
| 12-12-'03 | Installation by the Knip brothers. Rene Knip designed a system of illuminated letters that can be used for name signs or route signs, etc. Edgar Knip produced this system. The writer K. Schippers wrote poetry especially for this installation. The Stedelijk Museum of Modern Art bought this installation in its entirety. |
|
DUTCH INDIVIDUALS The Dutch Individuals foundation was formed in 1998 by The Frozen Fountain, with the objective of helping young designers to get in touch with industry. The foundation has organized various exhibitions with this in mind. These exhibitions were realized with the support of the Mondriaan Foundation, the Netherlands Ministry of Education, Culture and Science and the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The exhibitions were held at locations that included Milan during the Salone del Mobile and London during the 100% exhibition. (Designers Block) For more information, please contact The Frozen Fountain, attn. Cok de Rooy. ADVICE As a result of its working methods, The Frozen Fountain is in direct contact with various creative minds, such as self-producing designers, architects, stylists, photographers, pattern designers and graphic designers. As a consequence, The Frozen Fountain is an excellent source of advice on total concepts. REFERENCES Prins Bernhard Cultuur Fonds Netherlands Ministry of Education, Culture and Science Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam Rozentheater Netherlands Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment Nederlands Popinstituut PCM Landelijke Dagbladen Legal Flexforce Uitgeverij Idea Books Interpolis Amsterdam, October 2004. The Frozen Fountain Prinsengracht 645 1016 HV Amsterdam The Netherlands Phone: 0031(0)20-6229375 Fax: 0031(0)20-6383041 Click here to receive the newsletter Opening hours: from 13:00 - 18:00 Monday from 10:00 - 18:00 Tuesday till Friday from 10:00 - 17:00 Saterday |