DIRK VAN DER KOOIJ
Dirk Vander Kooij (b. 1983) is a Dutch designer best known for his playful extrusions of reclaimed synthetics. Holding the attitude of a craftsman and an inventor, Dirk marries machine and hand in the fostering of honest material expression. His time spent at the Design Academy Eindhoven fruited an ambitious endeavor: to apply low-resolution 3D printing in furniture production. The texture of this self-developed process has since become synonymous with his work.
Core tenets of longevity, functionality, and joy guide the Kooij collection. Of each object we ask: is this a permanent, worthy application of the resources used?
In 2009, Dirk van der Kooij founded this studio in the basement of the Design Academy, Eindhoven. His guiding question was seemingly simple: could plastic be an honest, durable material? Six pizza ovens welded together proved that yes, it could. The resulting Elephant Skin series saw recycled plastic wrinkle and contract as it cooled outside of a mould, conjuring a rich, living tactility. The ultimate imitator had finally found an identity of its own.
Dirk Van Der Kooij
The Meltingpot table designed by Kooij plays a keystone role in the circular design practice at Kooij. Discarded recycled plastic prototypes, production faults, and color tests form the basis of the conglomerate Meltingpot. Meltingpots are made available online as they are produced.
Dirk Van Der Kooij
The Sunflower lends playful structure to the fresnel family. Positioned atop asymmetrical steel stems, combined blooms exhale a warm, twinkling light. Hot ribbons of recycled plastic build each lens slowly, layer by layer. Sourced from rooftop windows, safety glasses, and industrial chocolate moulds, this unlikely material gifts durability and glasslike transparency to the flowers. Mounted upon a central steel ball, each tactile lens is easily redirected by hand.Recycled plastic, much like wood, carries indicators of its history. Based on the previous life of our plastic, the transparent material can appear cool or warm. The specific tint is not under our control, though is part of the joy in granting material a second life. Textured off black finish frame with 45cm round base.Angle of fixtures manually adjustable by swiveling around ballsIllumination: Replaceable LED modules 86WattsDimming hardware is built into the Sunflower, controlled by a footswitch on the baseplate.
Dirk Van Der Kooij
The Sunflower floor lamp designed by Kooij lends playful structure to the fresnel family. Hot ribbons of recycled plastic build each lens slowly, layer by layer.
Dirk Van Der Kooij
The Helm lamp designed by Kooij is a belted sphere grown additively from syrupy ribbons of molten, recycled plastic. When passing through the corrugated structure, light breaks, softens and multiplies into an engulfing spread.
Dirk Van Der Kooij
The stopstool designed by Kooij is their anti-endless chair. It is a chair that gains structure as molten plastic ribbons overlap in 3 key points. Stackable, friendly, and functional: this sturdy little tripod is a lesson in simplicity.
Dirk Van Der Kooij
Rvr chair designed by Kooij is a reverse chubby chair. The printed structure has been flattened to create a smooth, gently hugging surface. Composed of a single extruded shape, the RvR is our answer to the plastic monoblock chair. RvR chair is also available in 5 color options.
Dirk Van Der Kooij
Menhir bench designed by Kooij is unwieldy; different slabs of pressed prototypes and production waste are slowly cut and carved into the contours of the Menhir Bench. Menhir bench is composed of solid, 4cm thick menhirs, and the bench is suited to many lifetimes of use. Finished without lacquer or oil, it can be re-polished endlessly.
Dirk Van Der Kooij
The Meltingpot table designed by Kooij plays a keystone role in the circular design practice at Kooij. Discarded recycled plastic prototypes, production faults, and color tests form the basis of the conglomerate Meltingpot. Meltingpots are made available online as they are produced.
Dirk Van Der Kooij
Chubby chair designed by Kooij remains his most playful child of this process. Each Chubby is printed from 10kg of chipped, recycled fridge interiors. Or, more poetically, one standard fridge. Chubby chair is available in 12 color options, and color differences may occur due to recycled material.
Dirk Van Der Kooij
The changing vase designed by Kooij serves to warp its contents: as distant petals and stems fracture shyly through the printed matter. Undulating plastic ribbons dip and stretch to form the amorphous pod, whose personality changes depending on the angle from which it is viewed.
