“The objects that you choose for your interior are, just like the clothes you buy, an expression of yourself,” believes Charles Kaisin. “It’s a way to stand out from the crowd.” We know Kaisin from the interior of the Pixel bar here in Brussels. Following their book on Belgian architects and their homes, the photographer Diane Hendrikx and the lifestyle journalist Muriel Verbist went knocking on the doors of a number of top Belgian designers. As well as Charles Kaisin’s interior, their book presents the homes of fifteen other designers, including Danny Venlet, Nathalie Dewez, and Alain Gilles. Hendrikx’s photographs show their houses and apartments as they are, from a Brussels loft to a country farmhouse. Some designers keep work and private life separate and look for peace and family life at home. Others live and work in the same place. The interiors are very diverse: from sober modern, with white predominating, to colourful vintage with retro wallpaper on the walls. We see book collections, artworks, and the work of the designers themselves. Occasionally, Hendrikx offers a glimpse into a workshop where prototype seats are piled up or objects are on display along a wall like trophies. Each reportage is accompanied by a text in which the designer outlines his or her vision. Belgian Designers and their Interiors is a beautifully designed and inspirational book. “The photographs show the houses and apartments as they really are, honestly and without any styling,” we read in the foreword. But when, for the umpteenth time, I find myself tripping over a wee Playmobil man in my own home, I find myself thinking, “That I find hard to believe...”
Belgian Designers and Their Interiors ••
Muriel Verbist & Diane Hendrikx LUSTER, 256 P., €45
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