Celebrated trend expert Li Edelkoort creates unique exhibition for Formex

At Formex, which will be held August 20-23, an object’s inherent energy will be in the spotlight in a unique exhibition created by world-famous trend expert Li Edelkoort. The inspiration behind the exhibition, which will fill Stockholmsmässan’s entire entrance hall, is animism – the belief that even inanimate objects could have a soul.

This time, Formex’s guest creator is none other than Lidewij “Li” Edelkoort, one of the design world’s most respected trend experts. Li has previously attended Formex as a trend lecturer, but this time, together with Philip Fimmano, the art director at Edelkoort Inc., she will create a unique inspiration exhibition in Stockholmsmässan’s Entrance Hall – the largest exhibition in Formex’s history in terms of floor area.

“We are incredibly proud that we will be able to collaborate with a top international name such as Li Edelkoort and that she is creating and curating this exhibition for us! It is very unusual for Li to take on this type of tailored assignment,” says Formex Project Area Manager Christina Olsson.

Li’s trend book is used by designers all over the world.
Li Edelkoort was born in 1950 in the Dutch town of Wageningen. She began her successful career as the head of fashion at the De Bijenkorf department store in Amsterdam. After graduating from the art university ArtEZ, Li moved to Paris in the 1970s where she started her own trend agency, Trend Union, which now also has offices in New York and Tokyo. Every second year, the agency publishes the world’s most influential trend book, and this book is used by the designers and marketers at many well-known international brands, from Coca Cola to Gucci.
In 2011, Li launched the social media platform TrendTablet. She is considered one of the world’s most influential trend gurus and designers by magazines such as i-D and Time.

Li Edelkoort has said that she is very much looking forward to creating a special exhibition just for Formex.
– The Formex fair has an optimism and happiness about it that is not present at most other commercial events like this; there is a nice flow, a friendly presence of people, rather well-made goods and a keen sense of hospitality.

Can you tell us a little bit about your exhibition – what will the visitor experience?
– Our exhibition will be an almost spiritual experience at the fair entrance, serving as a guide to another way of shopping. By giving a strong focus on the emotional values of goods and materials we hope to convey the beauty and energy found in everyday objects. We will bring together the exhibitors’ designs with respect and intend them to be contemplated in a calm and soothing environment. As if encountering them for the very first time.

The exhibition is inspired by animism. What does this concept mean to you?
– The idea that we are all sentient beings connected in a natural way brings the idea of animism to the fore, revisiting the earliest and most primitive rituals before religion; the veneration of the forest and the feather, the river and the rock, the shadow and the stick. Even clouds and words could become objects of devotion. Because the overall focus at Formex this year is on materials we want to explore the philosophy of new materialism, a current strain in philosophy which analyses the power of all matter, believes that all materials are alive and have a proper existence, just like animals and us humans.

A longer interview with Li Edelkoort and more information about Formex is available on the website.

Contact persons at Formex:
Lotta Ahlvar, Operative Event Manager Formex, +46 70 789 41 52, lotta.ahlvar@stockolmsmassan.se
Christina Olsson, Project Area Manager Formex, +46 8 749 44 28, christina.olsson@stockholmsmassan.se