LONNY VAN RYSWYCK
‘If we begin to understand what we have been doing and how it could be improved, we can begin to make new paths into the future’
ATELIER NL
Claim to fame: Atelier NL is a research and design team focused on the relationships we have with our planet’s primary materials, specifically sand. Their current project sees the studio calling on people to send them sand from around the world, which Atelier NL then melts into region-specific glass. “By sending sand to us, participants begin to see raw materials differently. They begin to consider their origins and how they are related to politics, nature and the products they use every day,” says Lonny. “People tend to experience this ‘aha’ effect when they see the world around them differently - and that’s what our work is about.”
What to expect from this DI talk: “It’s important to approach the world around us curiously,” says Lonny. “We tend to think everything is too complex to understand, so we don’t understand most of the industries around us. We don’t know where our products came from or how production processes are related to our lives. But we can start to understand by looking carefully and simply questioning what is going on. If we begin to understand what we have been doing and how it could be improved, we can begin to make new paths into the future. It’s really about a new way of thinking.”
Lonny on Design Indaba: “Speaking at DI has the potential to bring our work with sand a step further. I expect new questions and inspirations to emerge as we navigate the land and weave our stories with others.”