Karin An Rijlaarsdam

Karin An Rijlaars­dam is a Dutch designer whose multi­dis­ci­pli­nary prac­tice spans inte­rior, textile, product, and colour design. A grad­u­ate of the Academy of Arts in Utrecht, she draws creative energy from her exten­sive global travels, often trans­lat­ing her expe­ri­ences into tactile and nuanced material expressions.

Driven by a deep fasci­na­tion with texture, Rijlaars­dam explores the sensory dimen­sion of design. Whether devel­op­ing a soft, three-dimen­sional textile with a hand­made sensi­bil­ity or craft­ing a light­ing fixture with an ultra-matte, natural finish, she believes texture is what gives an object its char­ac­ter. As she puts it, ​“The texture defines the skin that brings the object alive — it is gener­ous and repre­sents its unique­ness and personality.”

She is the founder and Creative Direc­tor of CLOUD‑9 design, a studio based in Côte d’Ivoire that is dedi­cated to creat­ing sustain­able designs with a posi­tive envi­ron­men­tal and social impact. Rijlaars­dam collab­o­rates with leading inter­na­tional brands such as Apple, Beats by Dre, Cappellini, and Kvadrat, bring­ing her refined mate­r­ial sensi­tiv­ity and commit­ment to sustain­abil­ity to projects around the world.