On the initiative of Design Flanders and Flanders Investment & Trade (FIT), a selection of Belgian designers and companies exhibited a selection of their new collections in one main event which took place in the Zona Tortona district. ABC – Authentic Belgian Creativity – was part of the Fuorisalone programme, organised by Interni, in parallel with the Milan International Furniture Fair. Three editions presented a very diverse and original range of high-end products. The participating Belgian designers and brands coming from Flanders – Belgium were active on local and international markets, in various creative fields. Going from indoor and outdoor furniture to home environments (domestics, acoustics, kitchen and bath appliances), innovative textile design, glass and tableware, to jewellery, silversmithing and fashion accessories, ABC- Authentic Belgian Creativity was at the cutting edge of all the design territories. By enhancing the value of intelligent and sustainable design using low tech and high tech solutions, ABC collective combined trendy style and taste with more relevant values, attitudes and contemporary issues such as aesthetics, functionality, ergonomics and friendly, simple but subtle uses. Mixing talents, profiles and practices, this was the richness of this collective that provided a clearer vision of what was projected to happen in this relatively small but highly creative land. ABC – Authentic Belgian Creativity – revealed an imaginative Belgian ‘window display’ which went beyond design by exploring different disciplines such as the contemporary crafts, home and urban screening, experimental sound design, new ways of eating and behaving towards the society and in our closest and most private environments. It opened up the frontiers of the classical design fields in order to create emotion, beauty and humanity.
