RENS is a research-based design studio operating out of Eindhoven. Renee Mennen and Stefanie van Keijsteren started RENS almost immediately after they graduated from the Academy of Art and Design St. Joost in Breda. At first, they felt that because of the title of product design they should design “real” products, but it clashed with their normal way of working. For them, their way of working heavily focuses on exploration of colour, materials, and research. Their dedication to experimentation and patience to wait and see what happens is what sets RENS apart, leading them to find opportunities for intervention. For RENS, their research nearly always becomes the product.
- Renee Mennen
“One time, [a Reddish vase] was in a photoshoot and the stylist was calling us, ‘Oh my god! There's something [wrong] with the vase because it's totally different! What can we do about it? Help! Help me!’ That's just the fact of the pigment in the ceramic, and that is the whole concept so it's totally right that it's changing. And I think that's also a thing that is in a lot of different projects is that the fact of time, and changing of time is really important for us.” - Renee Mennen
“So there were really restrictions and rules [about] what you had to wear. And it was a way to communicate with each other. I think [what] was really beautiful about this project is that back in the days, they—and still they do—but then you only have [a] few people who are wearing those traditional clothes, and they communicate with each other. ‘Okay, I'm in this type of mood’, or ‘I'm in this type of mood.’ So you can see [from] which colour you were wearing, what kind of mood you were.“ - Renee Mennen
“We were like, ‘Yeah, I think it has to be red,’ but then afterwards we were like, ‘Why did we choose it?’ But I think it's also that it's [a] really heavy colour. When you know you are walking, for example, outside or whatever. You are going to [a] party, and there was one woman, for example, wearing this really red dress, it's always... you see [it] first you know? It's really different when it's blue, or it's catching also the attention, and we really want to make also a statement with this.” - Stefanie van Keijsteren
“And it's not only red. First you think about red, and that sounds a little bit boring to do [a] few projects with the colour red. But then when you go in, and you will find different things about this colour, and the fact that it's fading more fast than [a] different colour, or that it's that the colour which will get the most attention, for example. All those things can be a starting point for new project. So that's, I think, the thing that what we found most interesting. If you can say, ‘Okay, it sounds a little bit boring to choose one thing,’ but then because by making it small, you can find a lot of interesting things. And that was also for us a surprise, that there are a lot of stories hiding in the colour red. “ - Renee Mennen
This interview was conducted by Samantha Slinn + Cheryl Chan -
You can further learn about their work through some of their projects:
