Born in Holland in 1950, Li Edelkoort studied fashion and design at the School of Fine Arts in Arnhem, and upon graduation became a trend forecaster at the leading Dutch department store, De Bijenkorf. There, she discovered her talent for sensing upcoming trends and her unique ability to predict what consumers would want to buy several seasons ahead of time. This brought her to Paris in 1975, working first as an independent trend consultant and soon creating Trend Union http://www.trendunion.com She is also the art director and co-publisher of the magazines View on Colour (color trend forecasting magazine) and Bloom, A Horti-Cultural View (artistic horticultural magazine).
Li is Chairwoman of the renowned Design Academy in Eindhoven, The Netherlands. Visit their website at www.designacademy.nl Dutch by birth, Parisienne by choice, international in outlook, futurist Li Edelkoort knows what the needs, lifestyles and choices of the global community will be two years from now and beyond. Leading manufacturers of products for the environment, automotive, home, office, garden, textile, fashion and beauty industries seek out her advice, creative ideas, and intuition in developing their own lines, services and marketing strategies. Always promoting design, watch her in this video supporting European Design.
In 2005, Aid to Artisans honoured Li Edelkoort with a Lifetime Achievement Award for her support of craft and design. Li is now part of the founding board Aid to Artisans’ European division.
Aid to Artisans, a non-for-profit organization, offers practical assistance to artisan groups worldwide, working in partnership to foster artistic traditions, cultural vitality, improved livelihoods and community well-being. Through collaborations in product development, business skills training and the development of new markets, Aid to Artisans (ATA) provides sustainable economic and social benefits for crafts people in an environmentally sensitive and culturally respectful manner.
In February 2006, Li Edelkoort also opened her first restaurant together with the famous Cypriot restaurateur Andréas Mavrommatis at Galeries Lafayette in Paris. With its refined mediterranean food and concept store, Laurier offers a whole new concept in dining and is a well-being experience. www.laurier.fr From June 2008 on, Laurier is organizes each month a photo exhibition around art & food. The first exhibition 'Toxifood' by photographer 'Sabine Pigalle' shows small culinairy digressions around human nature, see book bellow.
Eli, Dutch... Always ahead.
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