NORM = FORM design symposium

norm = form design symposium on standardization and design friday, september 2nd, 2011, 9am – 6pm

c/o haus des buches leipzig (house of books), germany

if a standard is really a form? innovation is standardized? how important is the design in the definition of standards?

‘norm = form’ deals with old and new standards for innovative product development for international markets. the event is aimed at entrepreneurs, managers, designers, engineers, architects, representatives of government and administration and students – to all those who deal professionally with the question of the role of standardization in the interplay of innovation and the form of play. dutch and german creatives will illustrate the influence of standardization on product design, visual communication, architecture and fashion. critical notes will be made concerning questions such as: to what extent are current standards usable in the future? should some rules be replaced by others in favor of economic and cultural innovation?

sven morlok, minister of economy, technology, transportation of the state of saxony, and margriet leemhuis, ambassador international cultural cooperation from the netherlands, will speak during the symposium in the name of both countries. an accompanying exhibition illustrates and deepens the theme of the symposium.

here the list of the keynote speakers…

from left to right – top row: stefan peikert, tom dorresteijn, gregor clemens, ed annink bottom row: timo de rijk, erick van egeraat, christoph hellfried, bernd schröder

timo de rijk from the netherlands is design historian at the faculty of design engineering of delft university of technology, and since 2011 has acted as special professor of design cultures at VU amsterdam. at the request of foundation design den haag, he curated the exhibition ‘norm = form, on standardization and design’ and wrote the accompanying publication. in anecdotal style he explores the subject in depth: from the standard jeans to the interior of chinese restaurants. this 2011 edition is organized by bernd schröder, head of VDID association of german designers of region of saxony, saxony-anhalt and thuringia.

find more info on the symposium.

university building, leipzig, germany

architecture – uniqueness versus standardization – erick van egeraat from the netherlands is owner of designed by erick van egeraat, an international architecture firm with offices in moscow, london, budapest, prague and rotterdam. one of his recent projects is the design of a building for the leipzig university on the site of a former church.‘I want to make buildings that are almost impossible, sustainability isn’t about technology, but about aesthethics. for that matter my buildings cannot be expensive enough.’ – erick van egeraat

visual identity for the dutch government by tom dorresteijn, partner of studio dumbar

visual communication – a new visual identity for the dutch government – dutch designer tom dorresteijn is partner of studio dumbar in rotterdam and shanghai. studio dumbar is responsible for the new visual identity of the dutch government, the largest house style operation in dutch history. around 200 state government organizations with different house styles were to take on one visual identity. a remarkable story about standardization, innovation, commitment and nostalgia.

garments by fashion designer gregor clemens

fashion – self-normalization of fashion – german fashion designer gregor clemens created the first collections for the berlin label lac et mel. UK vogue ennobled him as a ‘visionary’ and since 2010 he has run his own label [GC] gregor clemens in london. at the symposium, he will talk about the strategies of three successful fashion houses, as they try to protect their creative property against plagiats, since there are no patents solely for fashion.

furniture manufactured by oka neugersdorf office furniture

industrial design – development of office furniture according to current european standards – hellfried christoph, director of product management at oka neugersdorf office furniture, germany, reports how a form is created from a standard, exemplified by oka ‘jump’, the development of a desk for seated and standing activities, taking into account the european standard for ergonomics dimensions E EN 527-1.

internationalization – business standards for international design services – managing partner of the AHP group stefan peikert accompanied german medium-sized companies in entering the dutch and international market. in his speech at the symposium, he talks about business standards for international design services.