ABOUT
Forêt Atelier is founded in 2020 as the new design studio and mobile lab from Maidie van den Bos.
Being known to work under the Dutch name ‘Bloesembar’ at numerous events, we have come to a place where our activities broadened their horizon.
As the work laid itself out over the last decade, there is more coherence in ecology, art and entrepreneurship, which is delightfully combined under the name Forêt Atelier.
Due to Covid-19 there has been very little work in the event branche, but inspired by nature as ever, the work evolved in deepening our skills winning scent and flavour. The quest for connectiveness has found a solid place in our art practice.
In 2007, Maidie graduated from the Willem de Kooning Academy in Rotterdam as Interior Architect, while having a great interest in the urban and peripheral landscape. After several years designing for architects, retail and events, the urge to spread stories with food and nature became the most important practice. Since 2010 she has been developing culinary concepts.
The first principles for Bloesembar were laid in 2013. Looking for the connection between residents and the landscape in which they live, and how that relationship has come about and develops from a historical and future perspective, is the basis for the drinks that communicate about culture, season and place.
It comes intrinsically to her being to connect flora and fauna with scent and taste - or touch and sound to understand texture. Herewith her knowledge on captivating the surroundings aroma’s, holds a strong balance with the ability to curate the relationship between landscape and the human body.
The stories are researched and shared in projects for collaborations with municipalities and institutions where we share the specific landscape with its residents.
The creation of added value for the theatre and cultural events, in combination with storytelling, takes the form of a modest, yet compelling performance, connecting senses, time and place. In addition, the flora responsible for the flavours of the drinks that Forêt Atelier develops is so exclusive that it is used at a high culinary level for commercial clients such as growers, airline caterers and national and international chefs.
Foto: Ben Nienhuis, BWC Pictures for Re-Creatie Reinaerde
Great love is found within the wealth of edibility and fragrance (wild) flora offers her, through applications in health-care, both historically and in all its future possibilities.
Maidie’s technical ability of captivation is her expertise. She radiates trust with her knowledge, she performs as an advocate for nature, finding a voice for the perspective of flora and fauna, infatuating her guests with her concoctions and rites as a contemporary healer of people and landscape.
Forêt Ateliers mobile atelier is, from the end of 2020, fully equipped to do site specific research and production, for we have converted a van to practice all of our knowledge and techniques throughout Europe.
At the location in Rotterdam, Forêt Atelier has gratefully built a team of skilled and concerned freelancers which whom we’ve worked over the years, from chefs, to growers, to bartenders, to designers and like-minded entrepreneurs, our network comes together per occasion at its designated location.
Since this year our foodlab and atelier has moved to an exciting new location in Rotterdam: we have built a beautiful studio at De Achtertuin. From there we can distill, brew, cook and design, and most exciting of all, early spring we will start with a line of workshops to educate on ecology and the senses.
