AN INVITATION:

Dries van Noten is honoured to announce his invitation to Ann Demeulemeester to show her powerful work in porcelain and glass tableware, steel cutlery and lighting as the inaugural five-week exhibit at the Little House, Dries Van Noten L.A. This is the first time these great friends and creative peers have collaborated publicly. They have been close throughout their careers from their days attending the Royal Academy of Arts in together and as founding members of the seminal ‘Belgian Six’.

THE GENESIS:

In 2014 Ann Demeulemeester sought fresh creative horizons and embarked on a new, less urban, life alongside her artistic soul mate Patrick Robyn. Together they took on the meticulous renovation of a 19th century country home and bringing a wish to design a floral park and vegetable garden to fruition. As the garden flourished Ann began experimenting with recipes using her home-grown produce. Her instinctive designer’s eye and sensibility soon knew that plates and cutlery were needed to elevate her food and complete the circle of her newfound passion. Her sculptural vision as guide it was not long before Ann began modelling clay in her studio. At first only ever a personal passion project, Ann studied the time-honoured techniques of porcelain and glazes and eventually took the step of investing in a kiln. With time, trial and error the first Ann Demeulemeester plates, bowls and wares were brought to life. Soon she wished to share her new designs with others. A goal was to achieve an evocative melding of ritual, sculpture and utility, dark and light, fragility with power, rigour and informality and the monochromatic with vivid. In 2018 Ann turned to Serax, fellow Belgians and experts in the field to realise this vision with her. A collaboration founded on mutual respect and shared creative goals was quickly established and in 2019 Ann Demeulemeester – Serax was unveiled to the world.

“Dé” porcelain plates & “Zoë” knife

THIS PROJECT:

This installation has been designed by Ann Demeulemeester exclusively for this exhibit at the Little House. It is a powerful expression of the visual language synonymous with her work throughout her career. This language and values are fundamental to the Ann Demeulemeester-Serax project itself. All structural elements for the scenography were built and finished in Belgium and, earlier this summer, shipped by sea from the historic Port of Antwerp to that of Los Angeles. Walls and floor are in lilac, a shade mixed by hand and exclusive to Ann Demeulemeester. For this exhibition Ann has chosen to focus on two of her most emblematic ranges of porcelain Dé and Ra with a curated selection of six styles of glassware, one cutlery design and four lighting designs.

“Ra” porcelain tableware “Ra” porcelain tableware

“Dé” porcelain tableware “Dé” porcelain tableware “Luna” Porcelain lighting

BIOGRAPHY ANN DEMEULEMEESTER:

1959 : Born, Belgium 1978/81: Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Belgium 1982 : Golden Spindle Award, Belgium 1987 : Autumn/Winter 87/88, first Ann Demeulemeester collection 1992 : first Ann Demeulemeester show in Paris 1996 : Ann Demeulemeester first menswear collection 1996 : Ann Demeulemeester «table blanche» furniture with Bulo 1996 : Attribution of the «Culture Award 96» by the Belgian government 1999 : 2000 : 2005 : 2006 : Opening of the Ann Demeulemeester Flagship-store Antwerp Honorary citizen of Waregem - First men show in Paris – Opening of the Ann Demeulemeester stores in and Hong-Kong Introduction of the Ann Demeulemeester jewellery collection. Opening of the Ann Demeulemeester shop in Seoul, Korea. 2013 : Ann Demeulemeester leaves the company she founded in 1985 2014 : “Ann Demeulemeester” book published by Rizzoli and Lannoo. 2016 : Doctorat Honoris Causa - Université Libre De Bruxelles. 2019 : Ann Demeulemeester Tableware & Lighting collection with Serax

QUOTES

For Ann Demeulemeester, fashion is a form of communication. Her complex language of contrasts covers a whole gamut of emotions. The tension is highly poetic – her clothes reveal many layers of «soul». They are simple, the way a knife is simple. Serious but never severe, meticulous but experimental, strong but always sensual. Known for her elegant tailoring and dark yet glamorous aesthetic, she created a serene and darkly romantic world with an intriguing mix of edgy rebellion and sophistication.