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Ben Storms

Permanent Residency: The Depot

Behind the unique façade of one of Brussels’ landmarks, a new story has recently begun to unfold. On several floors of a Sablon building, Ben’s friends from Objects with Narratives have set up their gallery. On the top floor, Ben himself occupies a considerable space, where his work will be the focal point of his presence in the European capital.

Intended as a hybrid environment, it offers an unconventional depot and a glimpse into the work of a designer who thinks first and foremost with his hands. In a modular scenography, Ben exhibits and partly sets up the floor as a showroom where his growing oeuvre is manifest, highlighting how the different works come together in a distinct formal language.

It also provides room for conversation, a meeting place where, flanked by materiality, perspectives can be explored together, dreams of what might come next or a new collaboration yet to be initiated. At the same time, there is a stock and an archive, but not an introspective one. For Ben, an archive is not a closed drawer, but a promise: it shows what he is capable of, demonstrates what is concrete and tangible, but also what is not yet there, the future that is hidden in all things.

The Sablon depot draws Ben to a dynamic and remarkable city, with its international and intercultural uniqueness, the vibrancy of a metropolis that is likely to further excite and transform the works, his thought, through his action.

“In my design process, I always start from raw materials. I like to work with solid materials that have been used for centuries, such as marble or steel. After all, I am the son of a stonemason. I love these materials for their natural beauty and strength. 

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