With formal training in both ceramic technology and industrial design, Koen De Winter has had a long and varied career for companies including Axis Lighting, Volvo, and plastics manufacturer Rosti/Mepal. Some of his product designs are now in the permanent collection of MOMA in New York and other museum collections on both sides of the Atlantic. In 1979, he moved to Canada where he became Vice President of Design for Danesco Inc. and a professor at the Université du Québec à Montréal. Since 1990 his design office HippoDesign Inc. has developed products for a large number of Canadian, American, and European companies. His lighting fixtures have earned him a Canada Design Award and two Best of Canada Design Awards, as well as invitations to speak about his work across North America. He was also awarded Product of the Year (Frankfurt), the “Prix Hommage” at the Grands Prix du Design, and the prestigious Henry van de Velde award (Belgium). Upon retirement he co-founded a ceramics studio called Atelier Orange. De Winter Designs
De Winter was formerly a member of the board of the Conseil des métiers d’art du Québec and President of the Canadian Industrial Designers Association; currently, he serves as President of the Crafts Commission and a member of the board of SODEC.