Design to Market – Talent Program. Over the coming weeks, Dutch Design Daily will be introducing the participants of 2025, today Gion Berlijn.
Through his work as an audiovisual designer, he aims to stimulate his audience’s imagination. At the same time, he likes to encourage people to become more aware of themselves, others, and the world.
And Gion Berlijn is currently very busy with this. Together with cultural platform Dynamo, he is working on an installation of dozens of picture tubes that is intended to encourage people to think about the influence of digital media on human communication.
An installation of picture tubes? Tell me more…
It will be a scaffolding structure incorporating a network of 32 old picture tubes. These television screens communicate with each other via lasers.
What is the idea behind this work?
The internet often presents itself as a liberating and connecting technology. But I noticed that it actually tends to fragment society. This is because ‘contagious narratives’ – stories, ideas, or messages that are often radical or controversial in nature – spread quickly via online platforms, thereby suppressing other voices.
With the installation I am currently working on, I am investigating how digital media influence our communication and the dissemination of information. The process is visible through the picture tubes; at first they show varied images, but influenced by the network and the other screens, they eventually all transmit the same type of signal.
What makes your work distinctive?
I find it interesting to give forgotten devices and materials a new function. This is also the case with the old televisions and scaffolding tubes in my current project. And I always find it very powerful when designs respond to their environment. To the sound, the people, or a particular technology. In this way, I hope to stimulate people to look at the world around them in a different way.
How is the project progressing?
Right now, I’m mainly busy programming the installation and creating 3D renders of what the construction will look like. I’m also in the testing phase with regard to the lasers; I’m researching which ones are best to use and how I can integrate them with the screens in my program.
Design to Market
Design to Market is a talent program in Brabant for young designers who are looking to grow professionally and make a difference in society. Through personal coaching and practical training, they help them build their entrepreneurial skills and personal leadership.
Interview: Strooploos
