Laarman’s new studio, in a former factory, has pleasing proportions and a soaring curved roof, “so that if a bomb explodes, the force would go through the windows and not the ceiling,” he explains. It’s big enough to house the futuristic tools of Joris Laarman Lab, from laser cutters to milling machinery. On a typical day, a team of 20 or so works within view of a massive window wall (Laarman’s addition), beyond which is an organic garden and a communal dining table. As factory life goes, it’s pretty idyllic.
“An artist, a maker, is usually in an industrial setting—here, you’re in the middle of the woods. You’ll see a fox or a deer run by,” marvels Marc Benda, whose Friedman Benda gallery in New York will mount a long-awaited show of Laarman’s new work in May. Plinths and shelves hold beguiling prototypes, including the biophilic Bone chair, a breakout 2006 design conceived when Laarman was messing around with early AI software intended for the automotive industry. The project hinted at a direction he’s pursued ever since: Nature’s wisdom can bestow a higher purpose on design.
Laarman with his partner, Anita Star, in the studio
Examples from Laarman’s Symbio series can be found in the garden.
Displayed atop packing crates and pallets are a number of past works, including (in foreground) the 2023 Voxel round table and (at rear) the 2014 Maker chair (Polygon), the 2008 Bone armchair, and the 2014 Microstructures Adaptation Chair (Long Cell).