eighties chique

this is another great image that roy oppenheim shot in ghent. it really made me smile, as i have lived in brussels and saw those cool eighties numbers all over. they might look tacky and outdated in any other context, but in a city that the prominent design and architecture styles are art-nouveau and art-deco, this is quite an hilarious combination. you can see those eighties chubby 'barbapapa' letterings all over, usually they are offered for sale in basic bold colours such as red and yellow.

the appetite for mixing the old and the rather new can be found everywhere. i used to live in a great 'parisien chique' apartment from the twenties with original wood floor. however, when the landlord renovated some of the rooms, he choose vinyl carpets decorated with geometric patterns. every here and there, i found myself staring at the design combinations, admiring the freedom to mix styles and materials. this could only happen in a place that has such a design legacy that it is almost taken for granted.

in another place, some of those items would be exhibited in a design museum.