Johan Van Hengel
I have a logical and investigative approach, driven by a desire to enrich everyday objects with new layers of sophistication, individuality, and meaning. With a focus on function, materiality, and technique, I try to invest everyday shapes and objects with a subtle element of surprise.
Johan Van Hengel: A Problem-Solving Approach to Design
Johan Van Hengel's work begins with curiosity about the objects around us. Trained in industrial design, the Rotterdam-based designer takes a logical and investigative approach to his practice, looking closely at familiar objects and questioning whether they could be made, used or understood differently. After working across consumer electronics and furniture, he established his own studio in 2013.
This technical foundation continues to inform the way Van Hengel develops furniture, lighting and accessories. Function, materials and production techniques are treated as opportunities for exploration, with solutions often emerging from the construction of the object itself. His work is restrained in appearance, but there is often an idea beneath the surface that gives an otherwise recognisable object something less expected.
Rather than pursuing a particular aesthetic, Van Hengel's work is connected by this process of investigation. His designs demonstrate how careful observation and technical understanding can reveal new possibilities within objects that are already part of everyday life.
