Belgium's best interior designers coming to Hong Kong
Pioneer in use of recycled materials, a designer of the year and a well-known Italian innovator will be among the featured speakers at event
The work of Belgium's best interior designers and architects will be on display in Hong Kong next month as part of the Business of Design Week, an annual industry event organised by the Hong Kong Design Centre.
Designers who will speak at the forum include Charles Kaisin, a pioneer in the use of recycled materials; Xavier Lust, a furniture designer; and Alain Gilles, Belgium's 2012 Designer of the Year.
Italian designer Stefano Giovannoni will be among the non-Belgian designers speaking.
Belgium is well-known for its avant-garde fashion - a style once considered edgy, now globally influential. In recent years, though, the buzz on Belgium has centred on interior design.
"Belgian design is sweeping the nation", announced one American design blog this year. From the United Kingdom: "There is something about Belgian interiors that is just right - it takes the best of modern style, including minimalism and pared-back lines, and mixes it with down-to-earth linen textures and soft-coloured décor."
While recycled materials might be well-embraced in design now, in the beginning, says Kaisin, they were considered "more like a piece of art - surprising, astonishing" - but having no relevance to everyday life.