Femke De Vries Work Exhibitions Biography Contact More

Index, A statement about content: A Bag Collection A bag collection in which anonymous disposable bags are made out of a durable material, leather. The fact that the looks of disposable bags are universal, familiar, anonymous and have no brand values or illusions attached to them, offers an open ' experience space' for the user. By making these bags out of a durable material the user is invited to add personal values. 'A bag collection' is part of: 'Index, a statement about content. In 1908 the German architect Adolf Loos presented his essay entitled 'Ornament is crime' in which he pleaded for a style with lack of ornament. His essay was a statement against the, in that time, leading Art Nouveau movement. A style that was known for its overdose on decoration. Again we are surrounded by ornaments, but today not only the products themselves are over designed but also the 'experience space' that comes with a product. Marketing and advertisement filled this space with constructed emotions and illusions, in other words ' today's ornament'.These constructed emotions and illusions attached to products influence our relation with a product even more than the superficial Art Nouveau ornaments. They guide us in the emotions we attach to products and in that way make sure we all experience a product the same way. The overdose of ' today's ornament' drastically minimized the room for personal values and we are noticing the first counter reactions. Not only the longing for simplified / minimalistic product design is growing but also the longing for products without constructed emotions and illusions. Index, a statement about content is an analytical product approach with the goal to create awareness about effect of today's ornament. The goal of ' Index a statement about content' is to undress the product of its unnecessary ornament, everything that goes beyond the 'functional aspect'. A product should be a non-guiding, subtle frame whereas everyone can decide which values he wants to fill it in with. To bring products back tot their essence and find space for personal values ' Index, a statement about content' uses a number of design principles which seem to be very relevant in today's society. The design principles are: - to stress the construction, essence of a product. - make sure the product does not refer to anything beside itself. - to show a product without it's context. To show the relevance, the design principles are used in various products like; a bag collection, a catalogue and a print.