job smeets – DesignApplause

studio job dutch designer of the year 2015.

Oct 21, 2015

[ Studio Job ] has been awarded best Dutch designer 2012, 2013, 2014 and now again 2015. We could show a wide range of visuals to highlight this span but the studio wanted to talk ‘car design’ a nd sent us the following. Salute. Again.

above> click on image for lightbox

[ official release ] Land Rover to present the very exclusive limited edition Range Rover Evoque by Studio Job. The exterior and interior colours were selected in collaboration with the Studio Job design collective. The exterior features include finishing with design elements devised by Studio Job for the bonnet, the front mudguards and the doors.

Studio Job was founded by Job Smeets and Nynke Tynagel. The have made a name for themselves with numerous non-conformist objects at the cutting edge of design and visual art, varying from utterly unique furniture and the sculpture known as ‘CAR’ featuring the Evoque (2013) to their ‘Automobile’ creation of an extravagantly decorated Land Rover Defender. These were their first car creations, which they revealed in 2013 during the renowned PAN Amsterdam art fair, as an ode to Land Rover’s 65th birthday. It signalled the start of a partnership which has now resulted in the Range Rover Evoque by Studio Job. Although it is less extravagant than the Studio Job Defender, it is no less unique and challenging.

There are two versions of this Range Rover Evoque Coupé, namely the Job Evoque Bronze with polished bronze elements and the Job Evoque Black which features high-gloss black coated aluminium elements. The personalised features are the bonnet, mudguards, doors, roof spoiler, special hub caps and double exhausts. The name ‘Studio Job’ is emblazoned on the radiator grille. Inside the car, your attention is drawn to a relief signature by Studio Job on the 9-speed automatic transmission gear lever which combines beautifully with the ebony leather upholstery and the ‘Satin Brushed Aluminium and Gloss Black Strata’ inlay in the dashboard and the central console.

“The Evoque is a modern car in which everything is interwoven like a three-dimensional puzzle”, explains Job Smeets. ‘The concept is complex and slick. We have now created the perfect Evoque and its racing seats, panoramic roof and monochrome colour scheme make this coupé even more out of this world. We have replaced some parts with hand-crafted parts cast in bronze or aluminium, directly from our studio. This gives the car an even stronger identity. This Evoque is a future classic.

The Range Rover Evoque by Studio Job is based on the Si4 HSE Dynamic version of the Range Rover Evoque Coupé. The 2.0 litre four-cylinder turbo-charged petrol engine generates 177 kW (240 bhp) and maximum torque of 340 Nm, which can be achieved at just 1,750 r.p.m. The specifications include the Dynamic Plus Pack with racing seats, the Black Design Pack light-metal 20 inch wheels, a reversing camera and a glass panoramic roof with electric sunscreen.
The Range Rover Evoque by Studio Job is available at prices starting from € 92,250 (Dutch registration). If there is sufficient interest, a maximum of 20 will be produced. [ More information ] about this exclusive version of the Range Rover Evoque.

zero40 > ral 9010 white coated defender with special degree of gleam, photographed november 2013 in the studio. now studio job is planning to papier mâché the complete carossery

[ a haute couture car ] For a designer, one of the most prestigious commissions is the design of a car. Preferably for a famous brand or for an iconic car. Designing a car means you’re successful! There are several examples of this, but I will only mention the Ford by Marc Newson and the recent Renault by Rose Lovegrove. Almost always these become ‘concept cars’. A styling exercise at the highest level. The cars look like they have come from Mars, have various futuristic and practical gadgets and high-end ingenuities which the design team of the respective car brand can truly admire… at least, that seems the purpose. Sometimes beautiful, often magnificent, but often filled with promise!

When Nynke and I spoke with Land Rover about the icon of Land Rover, the Defender, which now officially reaches pensionable age, everything that’s described above was exactly what we didn’t want. It should not become a stylistic exercise, no beautification, no gadgets, nothing futuristic. We wanted a JOB Land Rover that’s here and now. A sculpture of today!

It all got totally out of hand! The moment that black lady entered our workshop, inspiration started to flow out of our ears. One idea after another. This Land Rover had to cross the world of Studio Job, dig up her own past and also take with her the most exotic and conflicting elements of the African continent on her freaky journey.

This Land Rover became a rolling cabinet of curiosities. The mysterious car that Doctor Snuggles always wanted to have. It’s the Queen’s car, but also the throne of a chieftain, and at the same time a mechanical rhinoceros, a freak show. An autonomous caricature for the leading part in a video by a leading pop star…

People, this Defender has become everything it could have become. Like a cubistic art piece with various perspectives. It is chaotic and bizarre as life itself. It certainly isn’t a stylistic exercise from the design bible, but definitely a rudimentary work of art, conjured from the high hat – also the controversial palette – of Studio Job. An anti-hero that anticipates itself. A diary and a mirror.

Job Smeets, Antwerp, April 2013

[ specs ]
model: Defender 90
year: 2012 – 2013
edition: unique piece
dimension: L 520 x w 290 x h 300 cm
engine: 2,2-liter diesel motor
performance: 90 kw / 3.500 tpm
torque: 360 nm / 2.000 tphm
material: aluminum, bronze, brass, european oak, faience (ceramic), swarovski crystals, hand blown glass, hand paintings, harness leather, high gloss pu coating, rubber ps 160, satin lining, silver leaf, smurray, stained glass, vlisco wax printed fabric, 2k alkyd hand painting, 24k gold leaf.

exterior>
– lamp holders with polychrome glass
– rugged terrain exhaust system
– mechanical door handles & faience grips
– crystal enlaid xl exterior mirror
– high-beam headlamp with candle
– high load imperial with smurray planks
– sirens in hand blown glass
– imperial mounted sound speaker
– aluminum & polished brass shock-absorber
– stained glass windows with peepholes
– aluminum casted tailor-made mudguard
– hand painted flags on pole (zimbabwe & congo)
– curtain rails & rings in wax printed vlisco fabrics
– mud flap holders with xl figurative rubber mud flaps
– crystal inlaid globe with belt drive & pulley system
– fuel system: hose, trumpet, grinder & barrel
– stick out tongue grill
– sex cake hub-cap
– bronze bull bumper
– charm chain
– capitol hub-cap
– colloseum hub-cap
– exhaust flame
– warning bell
– coach wheel
– high load tail gate
– gilded rhino hood horn
– rock mudguard & side
– exterior fire pan mirror
– thick toot
– porch roof fender
– cable reel & bracket

interior>
– crate of duvel
– barbed spare wheel & suspension
– classic steering wheel and knob
– low tech thermometer, leveler, timer & navigation- front seats upholstered in wax printed vlisco fabrics
– rear benches upholstered in wax printed vlisco fabrics
– car leveler
– sand timer
– dashboard clock
– mono radio
– rock handle & headrest
– french oak floor
– brass pedals
– heavy duty shift
– compass
– rock headrest

Museum of Arts and Design Announces Fall 2015 and Early 2016 Exhibition Program
Highlights include Wendell Castle, Japanese Kōgei, Ebony G. Patterson and Studio Job ( 22 March 21 August 2016 )

studio job landmark medley. carpenters workshop gallery design miami 2014.

Dec 5, 2014

king kong nynke tynagel job smeets

landmark in miami is not a closed-end collection, but an installation of monumental sculptures developed between the period of 2009-2014, inspired in the wake of the financial crisis of 2008. the selection was made in collaboration with loic le gaillard and julien lombrail, the founders of carpenters workshop gallery in paris and london. job smeets drafted hundreds of sketches, all somber in subject, and together with nynke, in the form of a family of destructive and dark objects.

foam model of the burj khalifa sculpture | photo courtesy of carpenters workshop gallery

‘… drawings that speak of personal loss and universal destruction. the end of the world and its appalling humanity. impending doom and the transience of life’s greatest treasures: love, trust and hope. they’re tragic sketches about crumbling cultures, failing systems, murderous extremes and deadly storms.

pride and fall, blind ambition, mass hysteria and all the other things that make us throw ourselves and all we possess into a fetid cesspit. the so-called lofty civilization where hate reigns and discord is sown. despicable regimes with countless laws, emblems and victims. manipulation through religion and propaganda. our truth is a dictatorial cycle that since time immemorial has made us fall and get up again, build up and demolish what we have built. (…) ~job smeets

burj khalifa 2013>14 | polished and patined bronze, cast aluminum, 24K gilding, silver plate, swarovski crystal, mechanical hermle clockwork, faux marbre, hand paintings, hand blown glass, LED fittings, electro motors | prototype + 5 + 2 AP | photo courtesy of carpenters workshop gallery

architecture is what connects this exhibition. cast in bronze, monumental interpretations of world famous buildings. but these icons are positioned anew, and find themselves in a vulnerable position, blown up or reduced to a simple lamp. what also connects the sculptures is the ultimate effort for the ultimate work. they are renaissance pieces for the contemporary applied arts.

it is not a rule of law, but I do believe that buildings tell a lot about their inhabitants. humans as creating beings. (…)~job smeets

plans for ‘big ben (aftermath)

big ben (aftermath) 2009>14 | polished and patined bronze, aluminum, brass, 24K gilding, silver plate, hand paintings, hand blown glass, westminister clock works and gong, led fittings, steel construction, polished verde guatemala marble | prototype + 5 + 2 AP | photo courtesy of carpenters workshop gallery

My nose my stekkerdoos: studio job for lensvelt. Milan 2013.

Jun 25, 2013

We were quite looking forward to talk to Job Smeets and Nynke Tynagel of Studio Job, whose creations can stress art as the counterpoint to design, can be wildly fun, unpredictable and we anticipated an equally lively chat. A healthy body of work affirms modernism though their sculptural translations also resemble sophisticated contraptionisms of time-traveling with Jules Verne. Tonight, Studio Job is presenting their new ‘Job Office’ collection for Lensvelt. The collection consists of a buffet cabinet, a desk, and an LED lamp and is an extension of the Job Cabinet launched by Studio Job in Milan 2011 – a metal cabinet with a single door that also comes with a gold-colored key. The venue, the refectory within the monastery within the Museum of Science and Technology. The walls and ceilings covered with beautiful 18th-century Sala del Cenacolo frescoes. ‘The Wall’ is our background music.

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[DA] The chosen space is extremely surreal. And the installation’s teaser promotion is of famous people with golden noses. Job, please explain this concept for us.
[JOB] Do you know what stekkerdoos means?

[DA] Please tell us.
[JOB] The concept is ‘stekkerdoos’ translated from Dutch means multiple socket, in this case, my nose, my socket. And you know, I have a strange nose. In high school I was told my nose looked like a socket. But on the other hand, the nose is also a handle to open a drawer in an office desk.

[DA] This is a story about turning a negative into a positive.
[JOB] I think so. Yes feel the handle, feel the nostrils. Finally you can open a drawer by putting your fingers in the nostrils and you don’t have to worry about your mother saying you can’t do that. After all these years.

[DA] An ultimate revenge.
[JOB] Yes, exactly.

[DA] When did you think of this concept.
[JOB] I knew it when I was 15. It just took 25 years to make it happen.

[DA] Tell us about the ‘Job Office’ collection.
[JOB] Lensvelt makes office furniture and people today are working more and more in their home. So we are trying to personalize this experience. These pieces are very modernistic, in a modern style, like this lamp that goes back to the 50s and we also merged a sculptural presence to the pieces. A merger of the right industrial product with the gilded sculpture.

[DA] The nose is a very organic statement and the gilded button is huge.
[JOB] Yes, regarding the nose I was looking for a handle and maybe we were looking for a human statement. An the most iconic thing about the lamp is this big on/off button. And there are 100 lamps in this installation celebrating 100 years of Lensvelt. Like a big KGB office with all these lights for interrogation.

[DA] This space, this installation. Reminds me of the crazy offices in the movie ‘Brazil’.
[JOB] Exactly. This reminds me of the Pink Floyd movie ‘The Wall’ where you could see all the hammers. That’s the reason for ‘The Wall’ background music.

[DA] How does humor play into your design concepts.
[JOB] Humor is quite important. Human beings are already too serious, especially taking themselves too serious.

[DA] Several designers we talked to mention noise and chaos and they are providing ‘peace’ and ‘natural’.
[JOB] Peace and natural is not new in design. All of us are just mirrors. I feel our design is reflecting what we are up to and our environment isn’t that peaceful. And our environment is very surreal, it’s never what you think it is.

[DA] What expression are we looking for here. Something good looking?
[JOB] No. We must all admit that we are like those sparrows who try to steal the bling. We are all attracted to stuff that shines. And of course we are attracted to beautiful things and I like to play with that a little bit. But I’m not interested in aesthetics at all. I’m interested in how humanity functions, in the seducing quality of the bling bling. The sculptural aspect can be seen in our work: We have created a lot of huge gold sculptures. And the office is all about function and we about are looking for a fresh a personal look for office furniture.

[DA] Is there a sustainable aspect of the office collection.
[JOB] Sustainable is important but the term is a marketing term. What we do is make unique pieces that are well made, and some of the pieces cost quite a bit. These pieces will be handed down from generation to generation, never thrown away. Some are museum quality and they will last a long time. It could be that 100 years from now there will be more Studio Job products around than Ikea and they are so much bigger.

job and nynke in the studio | photo: t. wolzak

[DA] What is your office environment like?
[JOB] Nynke and I work in a concrete environment, like a bunker. We are surrounded by modern design from the 50s and 60s. I like the period a lot, the post war reconstruction period. If I had lived in the 50s our work would reflect that period. I’m sure if Pierre Jeanneret or Jean Prouvé lived today their work would look so different. That’s what I mean about reflecting time, the work is really a diary. It’s such a tragic thing to be a designer when the only thing we can do is dematerialize. But this can be inspiring, if you can be as less a designer as possible and maybe make art. The conflict of design and art is quite interesting.

[DA] Everything here tonight for Lensvelt are production pieces. Though your body of work includes a great deal of collectables.
[JOB] Studio Job is in the collections of maybe 40 museums. And we have many solos exhibitions around the world. So we enjoy and thrive on limited edition sculptural pieces but we are also invited by producers to create production objects.

[DA] Is the function different with limited vs production.
[JOB] It can be. It really has to do with the working with the brands and their objectives. But our mindset is to push the solutions as far as we can. I see this philosophy in fashion, in haute couture, which has a strong sculptural aspect to it. And haute couture inspires the creation and production of products which still possess the sculptural quality but becomes more reachable to the larger audience.

[ Dutch Profiles ] are short documentaries about architects, graphic, product and fashion designers in the Netherlands. The series debuted in 2009 and there are currently 85 videos plus 10 in production to date.

[design miami basel 2013 ] 10/12> chartres | carpenters workshop gallery | 2013
13/15> black cat | carpenters workshop gallery | 2013

[ neocon 2013 ] 16/17> aftermath | maharam | 2013
18> bavaria | maharam | 2013

[ studio job ] [lensvelt ] [ salone internazionale del mobile ]