Nel Verbeke

CumLaude

Department: Man and Leisure
Website: www.nelverbeke.com

Rediscovering undervalued emotions

Nowadays it’s as if constant happiness is what we should all aspire to. This leaves no room for other, more reflective or melancholy states of being. Yet, in times gone by, these feelings were accepted in our daily lives as natural emotions, inherent to who we are. Based on her extensive research into past rituals of loss and sadness, Nel Verbeke explores how design can help us allow ourselves moments of melancholy. She created four objects, from a mirror to a monument, that embrace these feelings in a different manner. Together they invite us to experience a more human emotional balance.