Get To Know

Who are you? Creative being.

What is your profession?
Ceramic and jewellery Designer, artist, Art gallery worker, freelance curator.

Where do you come from?
I come form may places. Born in Poland, live in Norway, at the moment creating in China.

Three things on your bucket list?
Skydive, Walk the great Wall of China, Visit as many countries on the globe possible

You in a napkin sketch?
An eye, always an eye.

What do you love/hate about design?
Love freedom. I try not to hate, but than if You asked it would be opposite to the freedom.

What is your secret superpower?
It is secret….hard work.

What is the value of design / being a designer?
Possibility to create, make things better, more unique more your version of the how things You would like to be.

If you had three free wishes….?
Always being able to create, make right decisions and proper from what you do.

A must do/see/try in the Euregio?
???

Your epic fails best work/project/discovery?
Fails: discovering similar ideas around. Best work: Still to come- always space for improvement. Discovery: there is so many creative people out there, yet not everyone will have a chance to show it.

Who are you?

My name is Camille El-Achkar and I am 27 years old.

What is your profession?

I graduated June this year in Object and Jewellery at PXl-School Of Arts. Currently I’m searching for a job and in the meantime I’m participating in exhibitions.

Where do you come from?

I have a Lebanese father and Belgian mother, but I grew up and live in Belgium.

Three things on your bucket list? (Three things you definitely want to do one day)

Travel to New York, have a coffee, a bagel and a donut and discover the city. Fly a parapante in Switzerland. Read Umberto Eco’s ‘The name of the rose.’

What you love/hate about design is…?  

I get intrigued and inspired by design that has a timeless look. Looking at design, I love to focus on the piece itself. Without looking at the title, executor and date and materials the piece should tell a story and give the chance to wonder about.

What is your secret superpower?

Endless playing with materials and uncovering hidden qualities.

What is the value of design and/or beeing a designer?

The possibility to create and show different perspectives. These new dimensions keep your mind awake and push you to explore and think further.

If you had three free wishes….?

Hand them to:

My family

My friends

Charity

A must do/see/try in the Euregio?

Visit the Fashion museum and the Japanese garden in Hasselt.

Your epic fails best work/project/discovery?

I enjoy the fact that discoveries can be made by accidents or coincidences, they can be very helpful in the process of making. Some of my own preferred jewellery pieces are actually the product of an accident. I like the liberating feeling of these spontaneous actions.

Who are you?

I am Gernot Sümmermann, 20 years old, mechanical engineering student and series founder with passion.

What is your profession?

Anyone who has worked in a start-up company knows you’re not just working on one topic. So I develop electronics, create constructions, let creativity play in marketing and all sorts of other things.

Where do you come from?

Born in Cologne, raised in Bergisch Gladbach, went to school in Leverkusen and then moved to Aachen to study at RWTH Aachen University. 

Three things on your bucket list? (Three things you definitely want to do one day)

Travel extensively and discover culture on every continent. (Are these already more than three things?^^)

What you love about design?

Design can change proportions and at the same time beautify any bulky technology. What is important for this is creativity, which may be characterised by minimalism.

What you hate about design?

Complex, strongly curved shapes are wonderful, but to be economical, you often have to be restrained. Not everything is possible with machines and computer programs.

What is your secret superpower?

My superpower is having no superpower. I create something through my creativity. I bring it to life through modern software. 

What is the value of design?/What means beeing a designer to you?

Engineering today is nothing without design. Design is a flowing developing process, like the furnishing of our apartments and houses.  

If you had three free wishes….?

To realize all of my projects which will change everyday life in a positive way.

One must do/see/try in the Euregio?

Bicycle tour through all three countries with different culinary dishes and finish in the DigitalHub Aachen, in which the future awaits.

Your epic fails?

To decorate the office with over twenty free plants, it was more of a jungle. 😀

Your best work/project/discovery?

Every product will change the world in one way or another. Whether by avoiding water or chemicals for washing, by gamification in rehabilitation, by assisting entrepreneurs or otherwise.

ernst

Who are you?
Hi, I’m Hugo Duina, someone with a lot of questions.

What is your profession?
I am a bench joiner since 14 years, but I’m now studying craft Design in Gut Rosenberg Academy (Aachen)

Where do you come from?
I come from a little town in Burgundy named Auxerre (France). Currently I live in Aachen since 2 years for my studies. We came with my girlfriend because we needed a new adventure. We discovered a rich dynamic in the Euregion. It was a very nice surprise.

You in a napkin sketch?

Three things on your bucket list? (Three things you definitely want to do one day)
1. Promote the work of my muse: www.laurelinele.com
2. Keep traveling !
3. Knowledge does not belong to us. Pass on everything I can to the new generations.

A typical day of your life in three Emojis?
😣🤔✏

What you love about design?
I’m not good at talking, so design is my way to express myself. It’s not like if I had a choice 🙂
It’s also a good therapy, a way to get to know each other and discuss the world by broadening your perspectives.

What hate about design?
What I don’t like is design that doesn’t ask questions and doesn’t offer any experience. Who is for being, with no foundation. I think that many good designers are eclipsed by a design market that favours this “easy design”. That’s a pity.

What is your secret superpower?
Make a joke that no one understands and observe their non-reaction. This authentic moment is so much funnier.

What is the value of design? / beeing a designer?
I think the role of design is to bring magic into our daily lives. Although it’s a very material discipline, its enormous advantage remains immaterial.

I believe that being a designer means nurturing the hope of contributing to the common good, as everyone does in their own way, by making sure that we are not going in the wrong direction.

If you had three free wishes….?
Be a good father.
Learn how to shut down de Trump’s twitter account.
Find out which ingredients make Brasil sauce so addictive…. Please. Help me.

One must see in the Euregio?
Sometimes there are intense moments that you don’t want to miss. The Benedictine Abbey of Mamelis is one of them. At the time of the service (in Latin), the songs, the light and the space come together in harmony and reveal their full potential. These moments confirm to me that art, architecture and design are not useless.

Your epic fails?
I’m glad that singing is not a part of my design process…

Your best discovery?
Learn how to fail. I believe that a good Designer is one who knows how to take advantage of his best mistakes. If he is patient and attentive enough, the materials and techniques he uses will provide him with the best answers. But first of all, he must learn to put his ego aside.

Who are you?
I founded my own design studio in 2014 next to my studies in architecture at the RWTH Aachen University. As a young product designer, I work on products that are characterized by clean lines, functionality and aesthetic quality. All products are influenced by the simplicity and functionality of the Scandinavian design tradition. With my background in architecture, I believe in the importance of every detail and in a timeless way of design. 

What is your profession?
I recently graduated with the master’s in architecture form the RWTH Aachen University in 2018. 

Where do you come from?
I grew up in Ansbach, a beautiful small city in Bavaria and moved to Aachen for my studies.

Three things on your bucket list?
I like the timelessness and the simplicity of Scandinavian Design, with their respect for the environment you can often feel in these products. So for my it would be a pleasure someday to have worked in Scandinavia.

In the life of an architect it is always a big wish to design a chair.

And I would like to drive through Sweden with a bully in some holidays.

A typical day of your life in three Emoijs?
😊 😉 😊

What you love about design? / hate about design?
I appreciate the work process as such; Developing and working out an idea is always an exciting process. The design process is an analytical, creative and manual process at once and do never follow a straight path. 

Good Design is always about simplicity and functionality, but also speaks to our senses. The process of working toward the pure could be sometimes quite difficult with a lot of try outs until you have the final product.

What is your secret superpower?
For my it is important to work within a context, and these context is naturally my own personal world. I do not start designing things from a commercial context or brand context, but these aspects become important with numbers of other aspects in the second step. The dialog and the feedback with the people I work with are extremely important for me. A close dialog with the client is an important part of the design process, and a vital source for know-how and insight. Good design is the approach as being a question of identifying the relevant aspects and addressing them in the best possible way to each product.

What is the value of design? / being a designer?
I try to develop products that attracting consumers both in a functional and emotional way. High-quality and aesthetic timeless products make joy in use, are durable and therefore sustainable. Designing is also putting things together and to know what is possible. Innovative solutions regarding the use of environmentally friendly resources or the production processes are an issue working as a designer.

One must do/see/try in the Euregio?
Studying in Aachen.

Your best work/project?

I believe in a timeless way of design. I personal like the Normann wall clocks for Karlsson a lot. They are characterized by its Scandinavian and timeless appearance and are affordable in prize. The design is so timeless that you can enjoy the clock for years. They also had been nominated for the German Design Award 2019.

Who are you?
We are Laserkatze! Your friendly lasercutter store for creative designs and crazy projects. 

What is your profession?
We are siblings: one studied Material Futures in London the other business engineering in Karlsruhe

Where do you come from?
After chasing love or a job, we separately ended up in Aachen. This is where it all started. This is where we grow.

Three things on your bucket list? 
Henric: Have coffee with Ray Kurzweil, getting lost in Kyoto, see Laserkatze flourish
Sophy: Bead crafting with a tribe in Africa, hiking through Albania, being called Ms. Bossin at Laserkatze

A typical day of your life in three Emoijs?
💣🤔😎 

What you love about design?
Finding a solution that works and puts a smile on the customers face! 

What you hate about design?
Design: a field where everybody is an expert 😉

What is your secret superpower?
Making people feel good and sarcasm; get going when going gets tough.

What is the value of design?
The freedom to create interesting solutions in a narrow box full creative constraints..

What means being a designer to you?
Expressing myself and helping the world to look a bit nicer or make the world think for little while.

If you had three free wishes….?
Counter climate change
Unconditional basic income
Have a world full of custom or personalized products

One must do/see/try in the Euregio?
Visit the Cube Design Museum in Kerkrade

Your epic fails?
Our first start-up: monticon – bridging the gap between pinterest and amazon. 

Your best work/project/discovery?
Solving clients’ problems satisfies at the end of the day because the lasercutter offers almost endless possibilities 

Who are you?
A human from planet earth.

What is your profession?
Currently I am an intern at PLAYGROUND in Cologne Ehrenfeld – a small branding agency as part of my studies in Communication Design in Aachen. Right after this I’ll be working on my bachelor project/thesis. I’m am mostly into everything that has to do with letterforms, editorial design and photography.

Where do you come from?
I am from a city called Geilenkirchen; guess we all know the jokes, huh?

Due to the location and half of my family being Dutch I also find myself at home in the southern parts of the Netherlands or the country in general.

Three things on your bucket list?
(Three things you definitely want to do one day)
1. Travel over England & Scotland to Norway, Sweden, Finnland etc.
2. making a living off an own project/business, feeding a family with it
3. building a house

A typical day of your life in three Emoijs?
🚂👨🏽‍💻👫

What do you love about design?
Pretty much was it means being a designer to me. It’s a personality forming/refining job/profession; at least for me.

You get to train your eye for aesthetics a life long, break rules in a good way, and always explore new things; it keeps you curious. And Curiosity is what keeps us going, leaving the bed every morning.

What you hate about design?
Most of the time having ideas is great, they make you feel creative and clever. But often times they seem to be unreachable and don’t even work out, even if you want them to come to life. That can be annoying at times — particularly when you keep quite high standards for your work and yourself or keep staring at the „same“ thing for hours and hours and hours in row (and it doesn’t get better).

What is your secret superpower? 
Unexpected black humour.
And I can bake.

What means being a designer to you?
Being a designer means quite a lot to me. You get to work and wrap your head around a lot things/areas, you’ve might have never thought of in the first place. You get to learn quite a lot about how things work, influence people and topics through design. It’s not just making things pretty all the time. It’s making them work in the most efficient ways on sometimes the most basic levels. This is what makes makes being a designer to me a high privilege.

If you had three free wishes….?
I’d like to have an apartment/loft with an interior that’s just how I dream it. Where I can live and work, build stuff, cook like there was no tomorrow. That would be my first wish. The second one would be 10 hours more in a day. Aaand the third would be having three free wishes more (is that hacking or is that allowed?).

One must do/see/try in the Euregio?
Exploring it by heart. Just like everywhere, going out there without a plan or set destination leads to some of the most inspiring moments, to places you’ve never even thought would exist or would have seen.

Your epic fails?
Tried to start leaning code a lot of times. Failed each time. I’ll keep going.

And well, I can draw pretty letters — but yeah, you won’t be able to read my handwriting for sure.

Your best discovery?
If you really what to learn something new or see your in front a new challenge — just dig into it and don’t give up too soon. In most cases you’ll realize that you can do it, that you learned a new skill by the way (maybe that’s your goal) or just mastered that challenge — whatever it might be.

Who are you?
An Earth Dwellers named by myself Aixfred

What is your profession?
Engineer, Productdevelopment and a piece of management.
And also think sharp and out of the box. Even if there is no box 😉

Where do you come from?
From the warm, dark and lovley inside from my mum’s belly (made in West Germany). 

The GPS data leads you into the Sauerland of North Rheine Westfalia in good old Germany.

Three things on your bucket list?
Make a waffle, eat a waffle, give a waffle to someone

You in a napkin sketch?
🙂 Smilie for a nice day to come
🙂 Smilie during a nice day
🙂 Smilie to had a nice day

What you love about design?
You read this question-answer thing? I like the answers. They are free, they have a shape of humor.

What you hate about design?
I do not like, that there is no L. Maybe because it is a way of discrimination or L itself is not liberated enough. 

I think it is missing, making a link to Love you know 😉 It could be Ldesign or deLsign or designL or L without design.

What is your secret superpower?
If i would tell you it’s not secret anymore?! That doesn’t make sence. And if i would, i may become trouble with Juck Norris.

What means beeing a designer to you?
It is easier for people to cop up with me – maybe. 

It is a bit ok to freak out.

If you had three free wishes….?

I would wish more three whishes and give them to the needed.
I will not touch a single one.

One must do/see/try in the Euregio?
Dogs in Belgium
Cat’s in Netherlands
Birds in Germany

And here is the truth:
Paintings in Herleen
Waffles in Belgium and Aix
Fritjes Special in de Nederländs

Your epic fails?
There are one or two stories when I was drunk or when people thought I was drunk but I wasn’t – that was really epic.

Your best work/project/discovery?
Let the history judge my live and my successors will know it. If you try to live long you may ask them 😉 

Climbing roofs at night gives you an amazing view.
Painting in a field as an Open Atelier and Open Gallery makes really fun. Also the interaction with the people they didn’t expect this at their home round. 

Who are you?
My Name is Dana Lipka, I am 21 years old.

What is your Profession?
I am a Fashiondesigner in education, currently I am in my last year of a four-year studies called ‘BODY Design’ at  the Maastricht Academy of Fine Arts and Design, Netherlands.

In my spare time (not that i actually have got a lot of that phenomenon) I am dancing as often as possible and try to bend the borders of what we perceive as Fashion through embodying Dance and other disciplines within my work.

Where do you come from?
I was born in Aachen, Germany but I am based in Hamburg at the moment due to my internship. While being in uni, I lived in the Netherlands and went abroad for a Semester to the UK.

Three things on my bucket list?
1. Building my own empire (said no fashion designer ever), meaning: Setting up my own Business and creating a platform for young designers and artists

2. working with children in Namibia

3. paying back my parents for all those expensive years of education and support they gave me

A typical day of your life in three Emojis? 
💃🙏🖌

What do you love about design?
The freedom of expression and the opportunity of making Statements.

What do you hate about design?
The word ‘design’ still gets associated with an upper class target group, while there is so much more happening besides the attention layed on the big brands.

Social design, Innovation, finding alternatives to achieve a more sustained production. A designer is not just someone who creates what is rated as aesthetically precious.

What is your secret superpower?
I manage to eat a full cup of Ben and Jerry’s in about 5 minutes (and I’m not even sorry).

What is the value of design?
What does it mean to  be a designer to you?

That is such a hard Question, I could probably ask what the value of the human race would be in General? Regarding our past I’d say God wanted us to use, but instead we abused,

God wanted us to create, but we destroyed.

So let’s try to create.

That’s what it means to be a designer to me, taking responsibility and leaving a footprint.

If you had three wishes?
Chocolate Fudge Brownie, Cookie Dough and Half baked… oh and world peace

One must do/see/try in the Euregio?
Bonnefantenmuseum Maastricht, Aachener Printen, Carolus Thermen

Your Epic Fails?
My Installation crashed and fell towards the visitors during an important Opening event we had to do in second year. I think that’s the closest you can get to an Epic fail to be fair.

Your best work/Project/discovery?
Until now, I’d rate my Knitwear capsule collection as my best project, as I feel like this has been such a step out of my comfort zone, working with Knitwear, getting into womenswear as I used to identify as a menswear designer and growing technique wise. Furthermore I can completely see my own handwriting and spirit in the final outcome.

My best discovery though, has been within my collaboration projects with other artists/professions, as I find real beauty happens in the space in between.t_t

Who are you?
Hi – i’m Anna (Katharina Jansen).

What is your profession?
I am a freelancing illustrator. Working for magazines, books + nearly every project clients come up with. Beside that I love to give workshops, work in schools and create my own postcard + calendar edition every year.

Where do you come from?
Currently I live in Aachen. Lived here before. For 2 years as a baby and again for 5 years as a student. As well as in Cologne, Hamburg, Malaysia and at the German seaside for a while.

Three things on your bucket list? 
Illustrationwise my biggest dream is to design a stamp. A real one. That you can buy in every post office. There are competitions you have to attend to get the chance to create a stamp. But I’m not taking part yet – cause in case I will win, I don’t have a clue what my next aim should be! Beside that I would love to do a big fat illustrated mural one day. And I want to illustrate a colourful packaging design – hopefully for chocolate, lemonade or ice cream!

What you love about design?
That you can create everything you want. There are no limitations. When i want to tell a story about a banana with sneakers, i can create a banana with sneakers.

What you hate about design?
The super duper bad conditions when it comes to payment. Especially for illustrators.

What is your secret superpower?
Creating bananas with sneakers.

What is the value of design?/
What means beeing a designer to you?
As an illustrator I am able to make other people smile. About a simple postcard. About a magazine illustration that suits absolutely their situation. About a print or colourful calendar on their walls. Teenie tiny things, but that’s what highlights your day sometimes.

If you had three free wishes….?
First of all: Being able to always make a living from my illustration work!
Second: To understand the German tax system.
Third: Living happily ever after.

One must do/see/try in the Euregio?
Wondering about the fact that it looks so very different, when you cross the border from one country to another. Even if it’s the same street – you can always tell “this side of the the street is Netherlands – this side of the street is Germany” just because of the buildings, street signs, colours… That always makes me smile. Or maybe secretly kissing your teenage crush in the “Heckenlabyrinth” at the “Dreiländereck”.

Your epic fails?
Everything technology related. I try to do a lot by myself – but sometimes I make mistakes so stupid that my friends laugh very hard + long + loud about me.

Your best work/project/discovery?
Probably my first illustrated book project I did in university – cause I got so much positive feedback, that I decided to become a fulltime illustrator. Or maybe our “Blame us for our music taste” project. My loveliest illustration partner in crime Daria Solak and i started it two years ago. Every week the both of us illustrate one song line and post them on instagram (@blameusforourmusictaste) every saturday. It’s kind of a freetime project we started to make sure we do each week at least one illustration without any briefing by a client. It’s super fun + and I’m more than proud that we already did it for more than one year already! And so cool we got to know each other – last summer we met for the first time. In London – where Daria lives. After working together for more than one year already! Crazy internet world!

Who are you?
David Peichl

What is your profession?
Artist and art teacher

Where do you come from?
Eupen, Belgium

Three things on your bucket list? 
Travel the World to share my work. Have an exposition in an important Museum. Find the love of my life.

What you love about design?
Design can extend your being, it helps.

What you hate about design?
When I thought I got it right and then… Oh no.

What is your secret superpower?
To resurrect out of the ashes

What is the value of design?
Nature is the biggest designer there is. If design is great; you will not recognize its value. (The perfect simplicity)

What means beeing a designer to you?
It’s an urge, it means to have no other choice.

If you had three free wishes….?
That my loved ones have a happy life.
To regret a single thing I have done or have wasted my lifetime.
To move something in Art.

One must do/see/try in the Euregio?
The beautiful landscapes

Your epic fails?
Fails are the best teachers we can learn from.

Your best work/project/discovery?
Always the project I work currently on.

What is your profession?
Currently I’m studying Communication Design in Aachen! With my third semester starting soon, I’m trying to focus more on illustration. I’ve always drawn in my spare time and now I’m finally turning my childhood passion into something more.

Where do you come from?
I’m from Geilenkirchen (Yes, it’s actually called that. And yes, I’ve heard plenty of jokes about the „Geil“ part.) with some Russian roots. (No, I can’t chug a bottle of Vodka, heard plenty of jokes about that too.)

What you love about design?
I love the process of reinventing yourself for each project while staying true to your foundations. It’s about finding a balance between what makes your work personal, recognizable and also being open to new influences and approaches. Over time, design pushes your creative and sometimes personal limits. I’ve learned a lot about myself and improved considerably!

What you hate about design?
Sometimes there’s too much focus on design being „pretty“. It’s not about that. Design should communicate, spark conversation and at times even question what you believe in or always have taken for granted. For that, it sometimes has to get rough, dirty and even ugly.

What is your secret superpower?
Effortlessly setting everything near me on fire while trying to cook.

What means being a designer to you?
It’s about knowing established rules and actively breaking them in order to continue to produce interesting work. Break rules regarding not only style, but also social norms, etiquette and stereotypes. Make people think outside of the box by starting to do it yourself.

Three things on your bucket list? 
Own a stop sign, preferably by stealing it from somewhere it won’t be missed. Go abroad. Make a small living off my work.

If you had three free wishes….?
Have an apartment that looks like it came straight out of Ikea. Magically learn how to use oil or acrylic paints. Be able to cook without effortlessly setting everything near me on fire.

One must do/see/try in the Euregio?
Tell people about the Dom’s legend and watch their expression fill with either fear, joy or disgust (or every emotion at once) when they feel the little nub in the cathedral’s door handle.

Your epic fails?
Everytime I try to paint realistically it turns out looking like something you’d throw up after a night of heavy drinking and fast food.

Your best discovery?
Don’t ever take yourself too seriously. Dare to be bold, stupid and a bit careless instead. Drawing becomes the most fun for me when I don’t mind if it’ll turn out good or not and that always shows in my work.

You in a napkin sketch?