Final presentation Designers in Residence Kortrijk 2024
Every year since 2014, Designers in Residence Kortrijk, organised by Designregio Kortrijk, has hosted three designers from all over the world and from different creative disciplines for a unique residency program in Kortrijk.
The theme chosen for this edition is ‘All the Small Things’. This theme emphasises the importance of small details in shaping a sustainable future.
The three Designers, Eszter Nagy, Julie Merlino, and Yufei Gao, are happy to show their research from their three-month residency on Friday, 6 December 11:30am, at Texture Kortrijk.
Yufei Gao
A border is not a boundary
History remembers Kortrijk for two things: 1. being the border, from the golden spurs to the Treaty of Kortrijk; and 2. being the centre, as the capital of linen production since the Middle Ages. Following the 1820 Treaty of Kortrijk, around 300 stone border posts were placed to define the border between the Netherlands and France—later inherited by Belgium after its independence and still marking the current Belgian-Franco border. Yufei recreated these border posts in linen, imagining a surreal scenario where they move freely. This video essay follows the journey of the linen border posts, using Kortrijk’s history to reflect on the entanglement of people, industry, and migration, addressing the most divisive topic in European politics today.
Eszter Nagy
Edge or No Edge
Edge or No Edge explores the interwoven histories of weaving and computing. Blending historical craftsmanship with modern digital processes reveals techniques of reduction used in both. Taking a 1987 woven napkin from Kortrijk’s Verilin Mill as a starting point, the project transforms local icons into digital replicas. The work uses edge detection algorithms designed to show the structural essence of images. It operates on the binary logic used in computing (draw pixel or not) and weaving (lift the warp thread or leave it down).
By creating a dialogue between pixels and fabric threads, the installation juxtaposes LED screens, handwoven textiles, and edge-detected icons to underscore the link between historical craftsmanship and contemporary digital practices.
Julie Merlino
A change in the frequency
Light interacts with materials in various ways: it reflects off surfaces, bends when passing through transparent substances, or causes matter to emit light, as seen in glowing materials composed of microstructures. Captivated by the visual experience, structural complexity, and rhythm of traditional Belgian Damask, a reversible patterned fabric woven in monochromatic designs using warp-faced satin and weft-faced sateen weaves, Julie found inspiration to amplify microstructures that reflect specific wavelengths of light.
A Change in the Frequency explores structural patterns and interference in weaving, investigating the possibilities of creating new materialities and colours that shift based on the viewer's perception and position.
Practical
The presentation is showcased in Texture Kortrijk, Noordstraat 28 Kortrijk.
Friday 6 December from 10:00 to 17:00. At 11:30, the designers will give a talk. Register here!
Saturday 7 December from 10:00 to 17:00.
Free to visit.
Z33 - House for Contemporary Art, Design & Architecture
Z33 - House for Contemporary Art, Design & Architecture in Hasselt will showcase the work of the Designers in Residence 2024 from Friday 9 May 2025 to 23 June 2025.
This work was produced with the financial assistance of the European Union and implemented by the Goethe-Institute. The views expressed herein can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Union.
