Holland is famous for windmills, tulips and other more naughty things; three students learn how its liberal outlook has fostered a rich design culture.

THE three of them walk inside the strange hyper-modern cube houses of Rotterdam, Holland, see traditional Dutch architecture along the canals of Amsterdam, and get inspired by one of Britain’s best design exhibitions.

This sumptuous overseas study trip is the reward for the trio – Johnson Heng from Saito College, Melissa Chong from Alfa International College, and Simon Chong of UCSI University – who were judged to have submitted the best design ideas at the Dulux Emerging Talent Awards 2012.

The tour begins for the students, along with members of the media and corporate personnel accompanying them, amidst all kinds of funky furniture and light fittings at the 100% Design exhibition in London. It’s ironic, however, to see that what’s done in Myanmar as necessity – repairing and reusing old kettles and electrical appliances – is elevated in a British design expo as a chic eco-design idea called up-cycling!

After one day in Britain, the action moves to Holland where we see historic Dutch determination at work in taming and rolling back the sea at Vollendam, and in harnessing wind energy at Zaanse Schans hundreds of years before it was called “alternative energy”.

The reason we have all come to this country is because it’s the home base of AkzoNobel, a Fortune 500 company which acquired the Dulux brand along with Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) back in 2008.

Dutch ingenuity

Those who limit their visit only to Amsterdam could be forgiven for thinking that Holland is all about gorgeous 17th century houses perched on picturesque canals, a red light district, and legalised weed. Yet before anyone screams “kancah maksiat!” (den of depravity), it’s useful to remember that Holland has been a pragmatically liberal country for centuries.

In fact, as the historian David Landes writes in his acclaimed book The Wealth And Poverty Of Nations, it was Holland’s tolerance and open-mindedness that led to it being a haven for certain people from persecution elsewhere, people who brought much valuable talent and capital with them. In contrast, whereas Spain was once the strongest country in Europe, religious intolerance led to the Inquisition, a stifling of innovative ideas, and eventual stagnation.

Tiny Holland has been, and is still, one of the leading commercial centres of Europe, home to globally renowned companies such as Shell, Philips, Unilever, ING and Heineken. AkzoNobel is the big player on the paints and chemicals front, and one of its founders was Wiert Willem Sikkens who began making lacquers in 1792 in the Dutch town of Groningen.

Rotterdam’s unique Cube Houses — this is what happens when a conventional house is tilted 45 degrees. But what about the feng shui?

By the 19th century, his lacquers were being put into heavy-duty use on church benches, boats, floors and horse carriages. In fact, so versatile were Sikkens lacquers that they could even be painted to look like inlays of wood veneer.

On another day trip, we visit Rotterdam, the largest seaport in Europe (it used to be the largest port in the world by cargo tonnage, before being overtaken by Singapore in the 1990s, and then Shanghai in 2003).

At the Sonneveld House, we see a residence that looks quite like a modern condo today – except that it was built way back in 1933. The nearby Netherlands Architecture Institute displays a wealth of ideas, including those of the maverick architect Louis Kahn. Another participant of the trip, Mohd Khairul Idzham, from the Malaysian Institute of Art (who won a special lecturers’ contest) enthuses, “Nothing has inspired me more on this trip than seeing the work of Louis Kahn. He is my hero in architecture, a legend who changed the landscape of global architecture.”

Much of Rotterdam was destroyed during World War II and this gave the city a chance to reinvent itself with some avant garde structures including the Erasmus Bridge (which looks like something from Putrajaya).

But the most eye-catching sight in Rotterdam are the Cube Houses – imagine what happens when the architect Piet Blom tilts a conventional house 45 degrees on its axis, and balances it on a hexagonal pylon? The cubes are both weird and fun, but a tad impractical, as a quarter of the area inside each apartment is unusable due to tight angles. I wonder what a feng shui consultant would say about constricted energy and “poison arrows”?

Another highlight of our trip is to the AkzoNobel Global Aesthetic Center in Sassanam, near Amsterdam, where we get a hands-on look at the complex world of colour, as well as the history of paint- making in Holland (more on this in another article).

The Erasmus Bridge at Rotterdam looks like something from Putrajaya.

Feng shui colours?

We are also joined on our trip by Jeremy Rowe, the managing director of AkzoNobel Deco Paints, South-East Asia. He says colour trends are changing in Asia.

“China is really into whites while India is very colourful, and South -East Asia is somewhere in between the two,” he explains.

“Most like to use paints on the outside of their homes, whereas in China, they prefer tiles on their walls.”

He notes that, in general, younger people are more adventurous in using strong, deep colours. “They may search online for ideas on colour combinations.”

Paints can, of course, create different ambiences and enhance moods in homes and offices.

“Strong reds can encourage appetites, as can be seen at McDonald’s and KFC for instance, and my own dining room is a dark, maroon red,” says Rowe.

Every year, Dulux has a recommended set of feng shui colours to fit people with different horoscope signs (tinyurl.com/dxpat5h).

For instance, those born in the year of the Horse were advised, in 2012, to “avoid extreme sports” plus “visit a dentist” and to use the “lucky colours” red, pink, purple, white and silver.

The iconic landmark of Malacca, the Stadhuys (and the surrounding historical buildings) have been undergoing repainting since 2010, and Dulux was chosen for the work. However, there was some debate about the colours. It seems that after the Dutch conquest of Malacca in 1644, the original Stadhuys was white. Yet the building has been red for over 100 years. How did that happen?

“One story we’ve heard is that people were not happy about colonial rule, so they spit chewed betelnuts and sireh onto the walls. After that, they decided it was a better idea to paint the building red,” explains Rowe.

Similarly, for certain heritage shophouses in George Town, a special paint is needed because the wall surfaces are not that solid.

From paints of historical pedigree, AkzoNobel is looking towards the future, says Rowe. These range from super smooth paints on the Formula 1 McLaren team that minimise the car’s air resistance to eco-friendly paints that help to reflect heat away from buildings externally while purifying the air indoors.

All in all, it was a great learning experience for the three design students. Simon Chong says, “I am very inspired by the human-centered designs which focuses on how people interact with the spaces around them.”

Johnson Heng shares, “This is a really great trip as it’s given me lots of fresh ideas. People express design, not only in the systematic way we studied, but with lots of creativity.”

Melissa Chong points out, “The best designers and architects are not just those who are creative, but also people who are willing to learn. This is because any design doesn’t only involve one person.”

“After meeting all the wonderful people on this trip, I am amazed by how humble they are despite the high positions they hold and the knowledge that they have.

“Mr Jeremy Rowe was willing to walk in the rain with us while we did the architectural tour of Rotterdam. His smile is so humble and friendly that sometimes you sort of just forget he’s the big boss. That’s the spirit of AkzoNobel that I admire.”

Source by: The Star

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