The size of the indexed World Wide Web is 15.66 billion pages (http://www.worldwidewebsize.com).

The year is 1924. That’s a long time ago. That’s why this book smells of old grandpa.

The title is intriguing. “Woodcuts, and some words”. An honest title. Plain simple. As if the phrase “what you see is what you get” was authored for this book only. It doesn’t have a fancy wordplay. Someone once upon a time spilled coffee on it. Maybe also dropped a cigarette on it. Drank coffee and smoked cigarettes, while glancing to it’s precious content. This book I’m holding in my hand is some book. Extraordinary. Classic. Both fragile and pretentious at the same time. The thick papers, the fine composition on each page. So elegant and authentic. So anti-industrial, so handmade. This book can teach you how to make woodcuts…

– It’s like an old school version of one of the many ‘how-to’ videos on YouTube. I’m actually holding an offline version of a ‘how-to’ video. It makes me think of information, and how we approach and handle the nonstop floating information on the WWW.

What is the actual difference between information in a book and information on the internet, besides the limited/unlimited amount? I recall my teacher saying something like: “I will recommend you all to buy the book and not make scans and read them on your computer… because… it’s nicer, you know”. What makes us grab a book instead of browsing the web?

What is the fuss about a book in general? Is it because it’s capable of generating a certain feeling or a certain “vibe” which will never be generated from the most awesome and well-made webpage? Is it the typography on the paper, the quality of the paper, the fact that you can touch it and that it isn’t ongoing?

There’s an enormous difference between getting information from a book and getting information from the internet. I, myself, is having a hard time keeping track on the endless amount of available information on the internet. It’s interesting that the information about any subject on the internet is unlimited. It’s like having unlimited access to ‘knowledge’. There’s always more. You’re never finished. It’s ongoing. It will always follow time, never become obsolete.

The information in a book is not developing. There’s a last page. A period. It’s printed and can’t be changed in a sec. No further links. No sudden brand new pages. No updates. No hidden information. What you see is what you get. And *that* somehow puts the whole ‘info on the internet’ in perspective. You never see what you get, until it’s there. Always floating, constantly changing. Eternal information.

Rietveld > lib. cat. no: 755.1

Starting of a new academical year of design theory and research with an investigation theme like Unique versus Serial could not have been better. Chosing from a wide variety of design objects exhibited in “Limited/Unlimited, 100 years of Dutch design presented us with the unique opportunity to get an inside in the position of the designer during the last 100 years in the Netherlands. A characteristic of Dutch design is the coexistence of these unique objects alongside serial production, concept alongside industrial reproduction. “Goed in vorm“, 100 years of design in the Netherlands: by Mienke Simon Thomas (curator of decorative art and design at the Boymans Van Beuningen Rotterdam) was acquired by the library and provide us with a lot of interesting background insight.
The question was simple. Choose an object and find out what the position of the designer was in relation to our theme Unique versus Serial .

research: Samuel Schellink /vaas: Jan van der Vaart /research: Corné Gabriels

All those choices resulted in a colourful collection of investigations into the object’s background and the motives of their creators. Available in downloadedable pdf the students present: “Martin Visser, designer or collector“, “Starting with Anton Kurver’s Mailbox“, “Bruno Ninhaber, Stay Limited To Be Unlimited“, “Wim Gilles Dru Kettle“, “Wim Crouwel The Objective Functionalist“, “Adolf Le Comte, A Unique Mocca Set“, “Corné Gabriels, Not Your Average Fashion“, “Marcel Wanders, Knotted Design“, “Jacob Jongert, An Artistic Individualist“, “Limited-Unlimited, The Haque Plateel/Rozenburg“, “Jurgen Bey, A Narritive Structure“, “Jan van der Vaart, A Vase Is For Flowers“.

At the same time VIVID design galery presented a show of “Art Design“. A new phenomena that underlined the intriguing autonomous position of Dutch designers and design, making an on the spot discussion posible about art and design, commercial versus cultural or concept and functionalism. linked article Herald Tribune: Whatever ‘design-art’ is, it’s thriving ©2008