dick van hoff: elements exhibition

general view of elements photographic print ‘evolution of food’, 1999 by dick van hoff image courtesy of gideon hart, 2009

in this, his first exhibition in the UK, dick van hoff combines some of his existing designs with new, specifically-made works. from his tile stove for royal tichelaar makkum (with weltevree), through the robust oak and leather furniture pieces (loosely informed by modernist architect gerrit rietveld) to the crystal vessels produced in collaboration with dutch manufacturer royal leerdam, the five basic elements of fire, metal, wood, earth and water become fused together through van hoff’s craftsmanship and attention to detail.

the exhibition focuses on the importance of the hearth – the nucleus of domestic life. its latin name, focus, conveys its historic role as the central support of a building’s structure as well as the source of all heat and warmth. for contemporary dutch designer dick van hoff, the hearth is also an important signifier of the values he upholds in his own objects – integrity, solidity, conviviality and longevity.

the exhibition is organized and curated by gallery libby sellers at the garage, north terrace in south kensington, london until october 18, 2009.

elements is held at gallery libby sellers in the garage, north terrace in london image courtesy of gideon hart, 2009

royal leerdam glass series alongside large black tile stove part of the royal tichelaar makkum and weltevree fundamentals series image courtesy of gideon hart, 2009

a piece from the royal leerdam glass series, made from crystal and walnut, 2009 editions of 50 for each typology image courtesy of gideon hart

a piece from the royal leerdam glass series, made from crystal and walnut, 2009 editions of 50 for each typology image courtesy of gideon hart

large tile stove, unglazed black, 2009 image courtesy of dick van hoff

part of the royal tichelaar makkum and weltevree fundamentals seriesimage courtesy of dick van hoff

van hoff ontwerpen furniture, chair, 2009 image courtesy of gideon hart, 2009

van hoff ontwerpen furniture, bench, 2009image courtesy of gideon hart, 2009

detail of chair components image courtesy of gideon hart, 2009

flowers image courtesy of dick van hoff

portrait of dick van hoff image courtesy of dick van hoff

since graduating in 1996 from the arnhem academy of art and design, dutch designer dick van hoff has produced a stream of rigorously crafted objects for both his own companies (van hoff ontwerpen and weltevree) and for others, including droog, rosenthal and royal tichelaar makkum. his work has been bought by private clients and for the permanent collections of the museum boijmans van beuningen in rotterdam, the fonds national d’ art contemporain in france and the san francisco museum of modern art.

gallery libby sellers operates as a pop-up gallery, promoting and supporting emerging design in temporary locations internationally. by commissioning new works from some of the industry’s most promising and progressive designers, the gallery offers an alternative to the mass-manufactured and readily available. the gallery was established by former london design museum curator in autumn 2007 and has since gone on to present a number of critically acclaimed selling exhibitions. designers represented include atelier NL, daniel brown, simon heijdens, tomas kral, dick van hoff, julia lohmann, max lamb, peter marigold, nicolas le moigne and moritz waldemeyer.