Sensitivity to capture the new

Possessing a unique ability to anticipate which behaviors will shape the future, trend expert Li Edelkoort applies her intuition in a variety of areas, from consulting for global brands to curating design exhibitions. Over the course of her nearly 50-year career, Dutch designer Lidewij (Li) Edelkoort, one of the world’s most influential trend forecasters , has become an inspiring and transformative force in the world of fashion, art, and home furnishings. Her trend journals, which she publishes periodically, guide strategic decisions in various sectors of the economy, and her books offer an unparalleled blend of aesthetic delight and sociocultural analysis. In her penultimate book, Proud South, released in 2022, Li celebrates the energy and vivacity of artistic production in the global South in contrast to the stagnant ideas of countries in the Northern Hemisphere . With over 400 pages and stunning images, the volume records the work of stylists, designers, and artisans from Latin America, Africa, and South and Southeast Asia—creators who value ancestral practices and express important teachings about inclusion and harmony with nature.

(Mous Lamrabat/CASACOR)

When curating design exhibitions, Li also seeks to highlight innovative concepts. Among his most recent projects is the Everyday Paradise exhibition, composed of furniture and objects with a strong playful character, born from the imagination of popular artists from Alagoas — the pieces were selected based on research by designer Rodrigo Ambrosio and support from the Alagoas Feita à Mão program. After debuting in Milan, on the agenda of this year's Fuorisalone , the multicolored installation has already been reassembled at the Maison&Objet fair in Paris and at the Netherlands Design Week in Eindhoven.

Flavia Del Pra -Proud South -Li Edelkoort

(Divulgação/CASACOR)

Today, Li stands out as one of the leading voices for the advancement of sustainability in the creative economy . In 2015, she launched the Anti_Fashion manifesto , in which she claims that the fashion industry is trapped in an obsolete mentality that exacerbates consumption and individualism, and summarizes what the recipe would be to escape this trap: producing less, better, at a slower pace and in a way that benefits the planet and individuals. Similarly, with the World Hope Forum platform, created by her and curator Philip Fimmano in 2020, Li highlights the “economy of hope” by discovering and promoting the work of designers who work in a collaborative and local ecosystem in studios spread across several countries.

Born in Wageningen and trained in fashion at the Academy of Visual Arts in Arnhem, Li began her career in the fashion department of Amsterdam’s De Bijenkorf department store, but soon realised that her greatest talent was anticipating what consumers wanted. In 1975, she moved to Paris, initially working as an independent trend researcher. In 1986, she founded the consultancy Trend Union and, later, Studio Edelkoort. “I was never a great designer or stylist. I just knew what was going to happen,” she told Dezeen in 2020. “I’m basically a propagator of what’s going on in the creative community’s mind.”

(Divulgação/CASACOR)

Li Edelkoort is one of the most inspiring voices in the trend research carried out by CASACOR. And, during the CASACOR 2024 Launch event, Li shares her research with all guests. The CASACOR 2024 Launch event is sponsored by Deca and LG do Brasil .

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