Google and trendwatcher Lidewij Edelkoort asked Kiki van Eijk to produce eight woven still lives with Google’s line of cloth-covered products. Van Eijk made collages of hand-cut fabric samples, which she photographed, digitally enlarged and translated into tapestries in which the details and textures of the fabric samples are clearly evident.
In 1998, Edelkoort predicted that hardware would be softer and more tactile in the future. In 2018, Google debuted at the Salone del Mobile in Milan with Softwear, an installation bringing to life the sensorial experience of hardware, curated by Edelkoort.
The installation consisted of three rooms, which visualised the seamless integration of Google’s hardware in daily life. Softwear 02 showed part of a table laid with a jug, wine glass, plate and bowls and displaying Google’s devices: the ‘Google Home Mini’ (connected speaker) and ‘Google Clips’ (home camera). Van Eijk’s textiles create a modern cocoon, responding to the desire and necessity to build a protective shell in which we can live with honesty and fulfilment. The TextielMuseum acquired Softwear 02 and Softwear 04 for its collection.
The challenge was to match the colours of the tapestries with the colours released by Google for Softwear. Another challenge was to emphasise the different structures and textures of the fabric samples that were incorporated in the collages. For example, a knitted sample also had to have a knitted structure in the tapestry. Van Eijk used more than 40 different yarns, including mohair, wool, organic cotton, linen and metal.
Van Eijk (1978) graduated in 2000 from the Design Academy Eindhoven. She made a name for herself with her famous Kiki Carpet. Her work, which is highly personal and emotional in nature, is now sold worldwide. She finds inspiration in beautiful objects and details that she finds as she goes about her day.
She has been commissioned by various companies, institutions and museums, including Studio Edelkoort Paris, Design Academy Eindhoven, MOOOI, van Kempen & Begeer, Häagen-Dazs, Bernhardt Design, Forbo Flooring, Hermès, Saint-Louis, TextielMuseum, Zuiderzee Museum Enkhuizen, Het Noordbrabants Museum and the Rijksmuseum.
