Dirk Wynants
Encyclopedia
Dirk Wynants is a Flemish
furniture designer.
He is the son of cabinet maker and studied interior and furniture design at the Sint-Lucas, Ghent
institute for architecture. In order to learn the tricks of the trade he started as an agent for international design collections. Soon he realised that there still were plenty of opportunities in the furniture trade, especially in the outdoor furniture section.
He developed and produced his first idea in his own garage in 1994. This resulted in a round table with four integrated benches, adjustable in height. As a result, children sit higher and closer to the table. Initially the materials used were: stainless steel
, galvanised steel and teak
. Wynants' first design was named Gargantua. Nowadays, Jatoba
hardwood is used instead of teak.
The success was huge and Wynants felt like more. He founded Extremis, a company located in West Flanders, Belgium that designs contemporary outdoor furniture. Along the years, Wynants also collaborated with other internationally renowned designers like Michael Young and Arnold Merckx.
Meanwhile Wynants has won several design awards (the renowned Henry van de Velde Award, the Interior Innovation Award for best item, the FX award, IF award, Innovation Award, Good Design award, ID Magazine Annual Design Review, Prijs voor Vormgeving van de Provincie West-Vlaanderen, FX international design award, Interior Innovation Award, IMM Köln, Red Dot Award, Henry Van De Velde Label 2006, IF award 2007) and a score of management awards (Zelfstandig Ondernemer van het Jaar 2001, Hermes Prijs 2002, Leeuw van de Export 2002, West @ Work 2006).
http://www.bonluxat.com/a/Dirk_Wynants_Gargantua_Garden_Table.html
http://www.archiexpo.com/prod/extremis/contemporary-picnic-table-51209-98737.html
http://www.stylepark.com/en/extremis/woodstock
http://www.stylepark.com/en/designer/dirk-wynants
http://www.extremis.be/EXTREMIS_products/Dirk_Wynants/index.html
Flemish people
The Flemings or Flemish are the Dutch-speaking inhabitants of Belgium, where they are mostly found in the northern region of Flanders. They are one of two principal cultural-linguistic groups in Belgium, the other being the French-speaking Walloons...
furniture designer.
He is the son of cabinet maker and studied interior and furniture design at the Sint-Lucas, Ghent
Ghent
Ghent is a city and a municipality located in the Flemish region of Belgium. It is the capital and biggest city of the East Flanders province. The city started as a settlement at the confluence of the Rivers Scheldt and Lys and in the Middle Ages became one of the largest and richest cities of...
institute for architecture. In order to learn the tricks of the trade he started as an agent for international design collections. Soon he realised that there still were plenty of opportunities in the furniture trade, especially in the outdoor furniture section.
He developed and produced his first idea in his own garage in 1994. This resulted in a round table with four integrated benches, adjustable in height. As a result, children sit higher and closer to the table. Initially the materials used were: stainless steel
Stainless steel
In metallurgy, stainless steel, also known as inox steel or inox from French "inoxydable", is defined as a steel alloy with a minimum of 10.5 or 11% chromium content by mass....
, galvanised steel and teak
Teak
Teak is the common name for the tropical hardwood tree species Tectona grandis and its wood products. Tectona grandis is native to south and southeast Asia, mainly India, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Burma, but is naturalized and cultivated in many countries, including those in Africa and the...
. Wynants' first design was named Gargantua. Nowadays, Jatoba
Jatobá
Hymenaea courbaril is a tree common to the Caribbean, Central, and South America. It is a hardwood that is used for furniture, flooring and decorative purposes....
hardwood is used instead of teak.
The success was huge and Wynants felt like more. He founded Extremis, a company located in West Flanders, Belgium that designs contemporary outdoor furniture. Along the years, Wynants also collaborated with other internationally renowned designers like Michael Young and Arnold Merckx.
Meanwhile Wynants has won several design awards (the renowned Henry van de Velde Award, the Interior Innovation Award for best item, the FX award, IF award, Innovation Award, Good Design award, ID Magazine Annual Design Review, Prijs voor Vormgeving van de Provincie West-Vlaanderen, FX international design award, Interior Innovation Award, IMM Köln, Red Dot Award, Henry Van De Velde Label 2006, IF award 2007) and a score of management awards (Zelfstandig Ondernemer van het Jaar 2001, Hermes Prijs 2002, Leeuw van de Export 2002, West @ Work 2006).
http://www.bonluxat.com/a/Dirk_Wynants_Gargantua_Garden_Table.html
http://www.archiexpo.com/prod/extremis/contemporary-picnic-table-51209-98737.html
http://www.stylepark.com/en/extremis/woodstock
http://www.stylepark.com/en/designer/dirk-wynants
http://www.extremis.be/EXTREMIS_products/Dirk_Wynants/index.html