Community workplace Combiwerk
allowed i29 to tackle stereotypes
about those on the fringes of society.JEROEN
JEROEN DELLENSEN and JASPAR JANSEN are
two peas in a pod. ‘We’ve known each other most
of our lives,’ says Jansen, whose partner tells me they
began as friends. ‘We still are!’ laughs Jansen. The
Dutchmen went to school together, flatted together
and eventually launched i29 together in Amsterdam.
‘It wasn’t a conscious plan to start a business. It
was more about making things side by side, being
around each other, challenging each other.’
People tell them their work is conceptual,
‘but we don’t add a concept on top’, says Jansen.
‘Rather, trying to get to the core of a project is
about peeling off layers. On the other hand, we’re
not searching for minimalism. We’re not trying to
arrive at nothing.’
Across a broad body of work – schools,
offices, residences, and interiors for retail and hos-
pitality – i29 is consistently seeking to add value.
They do so by diving inwards, not outwards. ‘We
don’t look around a lot to see what other creatives
are doing,’ says Dellensen. ‘We look at each other
and search for the way forward.’2013
COMBIWERK
Located near the Dutch city of Delft, Combi-
werk is a community workplace for people
with physical, mental or social limitations
who struggle to secure ‘regular’ jobs. In addi-
tion to tackling the stereotypes surrounding
the institution’s users, i29 addressed the
reputation of interior design as a dispensable
profession. ‘The client wanted a building, so
he approached architects,’ says Jansen. ‘He
hadn’t thought to hire interior architects as
well. He simply planned to order a bunch of
stuff from a catalogue to fill the spaces.’
The project’s architects, VMX, invited
i29 on board. After seeing the results of Del-
lensen’s and Jansen’s labour, the client was
sold. Into VMX’s grey introverted mass, i29
injected ‘hidden treasures’: explosions of col-
our that distinguish working zones without
the need for walls. ‘It’s a reference to those
who use the space,’ says Dellensen. ‘People
with disabilities are so often placed in a box.’
Metaphors frequently arise during
i29’s working process, resulting in what the
duo calls ‘spatial stories’. This area of exper-
tise later prompted branding companies to
reach out to the designers with commissions.
Combiwerk also taught them how far they
can stretch contractors and call their ideas
into question. ‘We made a lot of custom
furniture, which was cheaper than ordering it
from a catalogue,’ says Jansen. ‘That’s unique
to our approach. We design a lot ourselves in
order to tell a coherent story.’
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