Axel Vervoordt Interior
You can’t talk interior design without mentioning Axel Vervoordt. Many times. The Belgian antiques dealer and interior designer has been around for more than just a while. Setting up base in an old Belgian castle, over the years he has evolved a keen sense of beauty and an unmistakable harmonious style, becoming a patron of the arts around the world whilst curating multiple distinguished exhibitions and hosting lectures. It’s safe to say that Axel Vervoordt is one of the most influential tastemakers of his time.
“Collecting is in your blood. My mother loved it as well. We didn’t live in a grand house, just a small one, but she always made it look beautiful. She lit candles every night. I love rooms with atmosphere.”
The line between different time periods seems to blur into soft-toned rooms that radiate respect for the history and original character of the space. His most bespoke projects bring together natural elements—light, water, metal, wood— and blend these with a modern aesthetic. But, as simple as it may sound to combine the old with the new, Vervoordt emphasises that decorating is not so much about aesthetics as it is about cherishing both the past and the present:
“ I mix art and objects from different periods. We’re all products of the past, but we must also take inspiration from the present. And we have a responsibility to build a new society for tomorrow. It’s a pity when collectors go contemporary and get rid of their older art. I tell them to keep the best of the old and search for interactions with the new. ”
“ The 20th century was synonymous with production, consumption, and disposal,” he says in an interview for Cereal Magazine, “but now we are running low, both on places to dump waste and on forests to raid. In the 21st century, recuperation is playing a major role. In this way, the old becomes current again. We appreciate old walls, furniture that has not been restored, everything that in its original state has been transformed by time, the greatest sculptor of all. Time gives these materials a second skin. It’s a gesture of love, a product of nature as transformed by human beings and the cosmos, which, over the years, has come to accept and integrate new forms. We must accept what nature and time have wrought.”
