Department of Cultural Affairs

By Yali Chen
STAFF REPORTER

Taipei City Mayor Hau Lung-bin and Mayor Rob van Gijzel of Eindhoven in the Netherlands signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) in Taipei Friday to enhance exchanges between the two cities. Van Gijzel also expressed his support for Taipei’s bid to earn the title of World Design Capital in 2016.

During the 5 days of his first-time visit to Taipei, van Gijzel also gained a better understanding of the city’s trade and investment environment. In yesterday’s meeting with Mayor Hau, he said he was very impressed by development in the cultural and creative sectors.

“From what I have seen I think our two cities have a lot in common, and I hope we can bolster bilateral exchanges in the future,” van Gijzel said, adding that he would back up Taipei’s efforts to launch its bid for the 2016 World Design Capital – designated by the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design.

In response, Hau said that with the support of Eindhoven, Taipei will stand out in the campaign for the World Design Capital in 2016.

Helsinki was chosen as the World Design Capital in 2012. Although Eindhoven finished second in that ranking, van Gijzel said they were still proud of their achievements, as the relatively small city had defeated 45 other cities in the running for the 2012 World Design Capital.

In recent years, Dutch design has increasingly been on people’s lips. As the cradle of Dutch design, Eindhoven has developed many world-renowned Dutch designers such as Maarten Baas, Piet Hein Eek and Hella Jongerius. They are known for their ability to link aesthetic innovation to social conscience, experiment to pragmatism, concepts to traditional crafts, and analysis to decisiveness.

Van Gijzel elaborated on Dutch design including architecture, urban development, landscape architecture, interior design, furniture design, textile design, fashion design, industrial design, graphic design and interactive design.

Eindhoven artist Jalilia Essaidi, for example, has worked with scientists in one of the world’s renowned medical centers and the University of Utah to develop bulletproof skin. This new technology, which utilizes spider silk as its base, will be used to create new skin for burn patients.

As the fifth-biggest city in the Netherlands and the birthplace of Philips, Eindhoven has grown from an industrial city into a hotspot where the high-tech and industrial design sectors reinforce each other. It now boasts the top design studio Philips Design, the Technical University of Eindhoven, and the Design Academy Eindhoven (dubbed the “School of Cool” by Time Magazine).

Eindhoven was named the world’s most intelligent community by the U.S. Intelligent Community Forum this year -- a title that Taipei has also won, in 2006.