Nieuw Zwanenburg X WDKA

Together with Nieuw Zwanenburg, WDKA students cultivate new possibilities for a future.

What does a future look like where viaducts, roads, and locks are built using crops grown on Dutch farmland?
Under the title "HARVEST OF DREAMS: FIBRES OF RENEWAL," 25 third-year Product Design students from the Willem de Kooning Academy in Rotterdam present their research, in which the fibrous crop miscanthus, cultivated on the local soil of Nieuw Zwanenburg, serves as the foundation for hands-on research, material experimentation, and innovative design applications.

This project marks a shift in design education: from sustainability to regeneration. It invites students to see themselves as part of a living system and to use design not just as a way to solve problems, but to help restore balance. Together with Nieuw Zwanenburg, they are cultivating new possibilities for a future in which design grows from the ground up.

On Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, breakfast sessions are held at Nieuw Zwanenburg in Oirschot, where the exhibition—curated by Tjeerd Veenhoven—is on display. At Sectie C, you can also see the students' projects from the Willem de Kooning Academy, along with a presentation by Nieuw Zwanenburg.

This project marks a shift in design education: from sustainability to regeneration.

This project marks a shift in design education: from sustainability to regeneration. It invites students to see themselves as part of a living system and to use design not only to solve problems but also to help restore balance.
In this context, the master-apprentice principle also comes to life: experienced designers, researchers, and makers share their expertise, vision, and practical experience with young designers, who in turn bring new perspectives, experiments, and energy. This intergenerational collaboration — rooted in trust, exchange, and mutual growth — perfectly aligns with the philosophy of Nieuw Zwanenburg: learning by doing, and designing from the ground up.

Together with Nieuw Zwanenburg, students and makers cultivate new possibilities for a future in which design literally grows from the ground up.

Major exhibition curated by Tjeerd Veenhoven at Nieuw Zwanenburg Oirschot

On Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, breakfast sessions are organized at the Nieuw Zwanenburg farm in Oirschot, where a major exhibition can be seen in the field barn, curated by Tjeerd Veenhoven.
With the latest harvest from Nieuw Zwanenburg—miscanthus, cup plant, and fiber hemp—his studio, together with the Fiber Cooperative of North Brabant, explores how both fibers and lignin can be optimally utilized. Not finished products, but scenarios, test setups, and material experiments demonstrate how design can drive circular, local value chains.

In addition to Studio Tjeerd Veenhoven, work is also on display from eight of his former interns, who are now forging their own paths in the world of biobased design:
Rik Maarsen, Sophia van Sloun, Kim van der Belt (4F.Studio), Emy Bensdorp, Simone Larabi, Maruschka Poolman, Eva Jagerman, and Lionne van Deursen.