Last weekend (23rd and 24th of March) De Invasie took place in Antwerp. About 70 designers or "warriors" were asked to participate and present their work at the old museum at the Suikerrui. More than 10.000 people visited the event. So we thought it would be nice to talk with a few people who showed their work. Laura Schillemans (26) is one of those people, living in Antwerp (2060) an she has a strong urge to have a creative outlet, her media being photography and jewelry design.
I'm not a photographer by education, but by heart. An ad girl by day and an art girl by night. Looking for sweet spots in seemingly ordinary things. Focusing on the details in my photographs, letting people discover a new world within the one they already know. A piece of stairs, a doorknob, shadows on the floor, neon signs, ... All little parts people often overlook, but they all contribute to the soul of a place.
By focusing on these details they get a character of their own. Normally they just blend in or disappear in the larger context they're part of (for example: a doorknob is usually part of a door, and is not seperated from it). You can also call it "uncommon travel photography where you often don't recognize the place where it's taken" (sorry - no full Eifel Tower in the picture) but I hope you can still catch part of its soul in it. It probably sounds corny but I believe you need to look for the beauty in the ordinary every day. These photographs are my way of showing "life is a playground".
There wasn't really a "starting point": I've been taken photos like these ever since I've been travelling. About a year ago my boyfriend Tim showed me ways to incorporate my photos in jewelry, making them wearable so everybody can take parts of the world with them every day.
Damn, now I wish Pinterest was an actual person. No, just kidding ... :) well maybe - half kidding. I do love Pinterest and I randomly pin photos I like, not always knowing from which photographer they are. I always loved Stephan Vanfleteren's ability to capture so much emotion in his photographs. Something I try to do myself as well, but in a different way: not with persons but with places. Recently he released a new series with old facades of stores I can really connect to. For me they share the same philosophy and feeling as my photos: highlighting spots people don't pay a lot of attention to (anymore).
For your reference:
Thanks to the kind people of . My jewelry is available at the 100gr Design Shop and together with other local designers I was invited to showcase my work (photography and jewelry) at De Invasie.
Yes, absolutely. I'm a sucker for "old things" so the "new old photomaton" was a very nice find ( ). brought a fascinating piece of work to Antwerp: life pattern objects . You can hand over your favourite song or video and the machine will create a custom object with shapes that are cut out based on the sound or movement pattern, making art personal in a whole new way.
Designcenter De Winkelhaak is an incubator for creative enterpreneurship in Antwerp. They brought local designers designers together in Flemish-Walloon duo's and asked them to create a mini collection together. With this project, which is called "EMBRASSE | AMBRAS", Designcenter De Winkelhaak wants to approach the dialogue around the "community issues" in a positive way. The launch is foreseen at the end of this year. I'm pairing up with Ununo ( ), and I'm sure the upcoming months will be very exciting!
More information about my work can be found on
The online shop (currently only jewelry) :