Imagine a world where the inanimate becomes animated, where everyday objects morph into characters with distinct personalities and stories to tell. This whimsical concept is at the heart of anthropomorphism in design, a trend that has captured the imagination of creative minds worldwide. It is a world where animals turn into farmers, root vegetables exude timeless wisdom and patient snails spin tales of their unhurried journeys. Within this captivating dimension of hyper-realism, STIR explores the intriguing partnership between Dutch-Belgian artist, Job Smeets and the legendary luxury brand Hermès Hong Kong, as they bring to life the enchanting universe of Hortus Maximus.

Amidst the vibrant metropolis of Hong Kong, this serene and almost dream-like oasis offers a tranquil respite from the city’s imposing concrete and steel. At its core, this large-scale installation embodies the concept of weaving nature into transforming storefronts and pathways. This metamorphosis celebrates the world of unconventional vegetable growers and draws inspiration from Smeets’ personal vegetable garden in Belgium.

In Hortus Maximus, the humble vegetable garden ascends to giant proportions, introducing a novel form of maximalism that emanates from the heart of nature itself. Rooted in detailed drawings and 3D models created by Studio Job, this design installation showcases elements from previous projects such as the ‘Tree of Life’ (Faena, Miami) and the ‘Watering Can & Fruit Series’. The amalgamation of surreal high-end finishes with everyday elements, including watering cans and wheelbarrows, stands as a hallmark of the sculpture artist’s distinctive style.

Each window display combines familiar elements that seamlessly blend with the cherished exhibits of Chinese gourds, leeks and pumpkins. These displays evoke a sense of wonder and nostalgia, reminiscent of childhood fairy tales. The result is a mesmerizing blend of art and design, playfulness and mystery. This series marks the second collaboration between Smeets and Hermès, with the artist not only designing the windows but overseeing the creation of all 70 Hermès windows in France for the summer season. 

For this collaborative series, Smeets and his studio adopted a fresh design approach, distinct from the initial project. While the first collaboration saw Hermès producers translating the sculptor’s sketches into reality, the second project took shape with a more deliberate process. Detailed drawings provided by Smeets served as the blueprint, with the skilled hands of the Hermes producers bringing it to life. Even though both projects were conceived concurrently, they branched into distinct outcomes.

The first project painted a vivid picture of the ultimate summer heat, with humans colonizing Mars, a whimsical tribute inspired by Bowie’s classic. The sculpture artist’s role in overseeing these dual projects resembled that of a chess player making strategic moves in two diverse global arenas, employing contrasting creative processes to cater to distinct audiences.

“It is really a way of ‘Method’ designing when you crawl into someone else’s universe. For me, it’s a creative challenge to do a complex project with the same brief for the same company at the same time and have two unique outcomes. For the windows in Hong Kong it is grounded in mannerism style by blowing the proportions up, in that way it becomes even more real and surreal, it becomes hyper-real. ‘Life on Mars’ for France was very tactile, theatrical and intimate, whereas ‘Hortus Maximus’ is bold and astonishing, a photorealistic scene exploring the form of the vegetables and the texture and architecture of the plants created by nature”, describes the contemporary artist on his insights into the creative process.

In their Netherlands atelier, Smeets engages in a diverse array of crafts, which bridges art, interiors and design, his team encompasses traditional craftsmen, such as sculptors and specialists skilled in bronze casting, stained glass and hand painting, who work along experts well-versed in modern technologies like lasers and 3D printing.

What sets Smeets apart is his ability to meld technique, science, design and art into a Gesamtkunstwerk – a total artwork or an all-encompassing art form. It is a contemporary interpretation of the applied arts of the renaissance. Smeets' work carries a touch of humour that he uses as a tool to tackle serious subjects like capitalism, taste and the legacies of art and design. He has been recognized as a pioneer in contemporary conceptual and sculptural design, even though his initial foray was met with resistance from the ruling modernist establishments in the industry. Undeterred, this artist not only created a market but also coined a genre he termed “non-modernism”. 

The distinctiveness of this sculptural designer’s work lies in its idiosyncrasy, characterized by a unique library of iconography, pop culture references, cartoonish humour and a touch of excessive ornamentation. Often described as ‘neo-gothic’, his pieces exude a fanciful charm that straddles the line between art and kitsch frequently offered as one-off or limited edition artworks. Smeet sees his body of work as a continuation of a European tradition that momentarily wavered during the rise of industrial design and mass production.

Studio Job’s versatility extends across various domains such as art, design, fashion, architecture and interiors. They have collaborated with an extensive roster of high-profile clients including, sculptural works for Gufram, Barneys and Land Rover, set designs for Viktor and Rolf and Mika and product collections for brands such as Hermès, Alessi Moooi and Pepsi, among others their illustrious journey includes a unique honour, as they were commissioned by King Alexander of The Netherlands in 2013 to redesign the national stamp. The current national stamp features the artistic touch of Smeets and could be considered one of the most widely reproduced Dutch artworks in history.

In collaboration with Hermès Hong Kong, Smeets has created a dreamscape that blurs the lines between design, art and reality. His ability to transform the mundane into the magical is a testament to the endless possibilities of design. The world he creates is a whimsical adventure, where animals and vegetables become characters and nature integrates with the urban landscape. Each element of his design installation invites us to pause, look closer and reimagine our surroundings. It is a world that sparks a childlike wonder, reminding us of the stories our imagination used to tell. ‘Hortus Maximus’ stands as a vivid reminder that design is not merely a practical endeavour; it is a journey of storytelling and creation that can transform the ordinary into the extraordinary.

Hortus Maximus will be on view at Hermès flagship store, Landmark Price, 10 Charter Road Central, Hong Kong until November 2023.