About - Material Stories

Aart van Bezooijen founded Material Stories to bridge the gap between the materials industry and world of design. Paula Raché supports in projects involving graphic, packaging and exhibition design.

Aart van Bezooyen
Aart loves exploring and testing alternative materials that can contribute to a more sustainable future.

Aart van Bezooijen is a Dutch industrial designer with an obsession for materials. His path has, therefore, always been material orientated starting with a materials selection support tool for designers — the Material Explorer — which was included in his Master's degree in Industrial Design from the Delft University of Technology (2002) and nominated by the Danish INDEX: Design To Improve Life organization.

Truthful to the Dutch's conceptual approach to design, Aart started working as a design consultant at PARK Advanced Design Management in 2003 and in 2005 decided to fully focus on his passion by driving the launch of Material Explorer with the support of Materia. He then founded Material Stories in Hamburg, offering consultancy services that would bridge the gap between the materials industry and the world of design.

Ever so often, he reports about European material and design events on publications such as Core77 Design Network, among others. With Hands-on Materials Education he documents his collaborative projects (2012–2020) and establishing of a Material Collection at the Burg Giebichenstein University of Art and Design in Germany. Since 2021, Aart works as Associate Professor at the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano exploring the future of materials and making with the Faculty of Design and Art.

Paula Y. Rache
Paula focuses on connecting design with society to encourage critical and creative thinking.

Paula Raché is a graphic designer and researcher born in Berlin. Paula works as freelance designer and focuses on connecting design with society to encourage people's critical and creative thinking. She joins Material Stories for projects that include graphic, packaging and exhibition design.

FRIENDS AND CLIENTS

Association of Dutch Designers (BNO), Association of German Designers (VDID), BASIS Vinschgau Venosta, Bauhaus-Museum Weimar, bayern design, Bayern Innovativ, Beiersdorf, BITZ unibz fablab, Burg Giebichenstein University of Art and Design, Concordia Design, Core77 Design Network, Danish Design Centre, Delft University of Technology, design for human nature, Deutsche Messe, Dutch Design Foundation, Eurac Research, form magazine, Fraunhofer Society, Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, FuturePackLab, GEA, Grassi Museum, Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft, Hyundai and KIA Motors, iF Design, Institut für Universal Design, Muthesius University of Fine Arts and Design, Mutter design consultants, O2 Global Network for Sustainable Design, Panatom, PARK advanced design management, Peter Schmidt Group, Red Dot, Royal Ahrend, SYN Stiftung, University of the Arts Bremen, Viva con Agua, Weißensee Academy of Art Berlin, Zieta Prozessdesign, 360 Inspiration