Local news about Lakoi and sustainability

T he shop on Slijkstraat has the atmosphere of a living room with its creaking wooden floor, collection of samples and colourful artworks. “It is half studio, half shop and gallery”, explains owner Michael. “Secretly my style is very

Text continues after the image - Photos: Brian Elings

modern and sleek, but I want to keep it accessible. People are often 'afraid' of art. They think everything is expensive or that you have to walk around with your hands behind your back. But you can just look around here and, so to speak, walk in ten times without buying anything."

Lakoi consists of three 'core activities': an art dealership, a publisher of exclusive editions and a framing workshop. Michael rejects the throwaway culture and opts for an artisanal framing workshop. Inspired by a conversation with a friend, he realized that products used to be designed to last.

'After all, lists are about conservation'

“I went to dinner with a friend who was having his washing machine repaired. He’d had it since college, and the repairman said it would last another 1,500 washes. I thought, my washing machine is two years old and it’s already leaking. What’s this trend? I started wondering, how many companies still make things that last a lifetime?” This realization changed his perspective on his work: he wants his frames to last for generations. “After all, frames are about conservation.”

He only uses sustainable materials, such as FSC and PEFC certified wood and only cardboard from the Netherlands. He also experiments with innovative techniques. To minimize waste, he has optimized his production process, in which wood is delivered to size to prevent waste. He also ordered new stickers two weeks ago. “They are made from agricultural waste. Even the glue is biodegradable.”

Better alternatives

All these new ideas came about organically, says Michael. “For example, I didn’t necessarily aim to get everything from Europe, but if you strive for quality, you don’t end up at cheap Chinese factories. Just like you make a delicious dish that is ‘accidentally’ vegan, that’s how it went for me with sustainability.”

Michael calls cheap mass production the ‘fast fashion’ of frames. Although sustainability seems to be a low priority in the industry, he is committed to change. “Plastic can only be recycled three times. After that, it’s no longer usable, so I’m looking for better alternatives. I’m talking to suppliers about museum glass, which currently comes with plastic, to see if it can be done with paper. And I’m thinking about a machine that melts plastic and turns it into reusable beads.”

'If I go for something, it has to be arranged within a week'

When asked if the cogs in his head ever stop turning, Michael answers with a laugh: “When I go for something, it has to be done within a week. I used to have passion projects like that, but then I only did it for myself. Now I do it for all my customers. I don’t want to give away a product that is covered in unnecessary plastic. I feel a certain responsibility for that.”

Funny enough, it’s harder to live sustainably at home, says Michael. “Separating waste is actually no longer possible because of the new rules, but I do what I can. For example, because I live close to the store, I haven’t had a car for years.”

Nothing to lose

The visionary started Lakoi in 2020. Reimund Nies, the owner of Lijstenmakerij Nies Feenstra, passed away in April of that year. “I was working at a framing shop in Bussum at the time, where I also lived, and a colleague of mine went to get an ice cream at Nelis. Then she saw that the shop on Slijkstraat was empty. She said to Reimund's family: 'If you want to sell it, let me know.' In the end, my colleague didn't dare. Then I said: 'I want to do it.' And now, almost five years have passed.”

Why did you dare? “I had nothing to lose. I was 27, didn’t have – didn’t want – children, no mortgage, just a job. If it didn’t work out, I would lose some money, but I could always do something else. I didn’t want to think at fifty: ‘I wish I had tried.’ Because that’s worse than failing.” Moreover, Michael, who also makes art himself, knows how important frames are. “They really finish works of art. A bad frame can ‘break’ a work.”

Text continues after the image - Photos: Brian Elings

'I learned the most when I started working for myself.'

In Bussum he had already learned a thing or two about making frames. “But I learned the most when I started my own business here. I really had to do it myself and called many other framers for advice. I also immersed myself in the theory.” His very first assignment was a big one. “I had to make a frame for a large skirt,” he says. “Luckily it was already stretched, because I had no idea how to do that. It was a bit of a shock, but in the end it worked out well. And that customer still comes by regularly!”

Michael’s clientele is diverse. “From people who don’t really care about frames to people who are very enthusiastic about them. Some are art collectors, some want to have something framed for emotional value, like a piece of art that hung in their grandmother’s house.”

Picasso and Dalí

The collaboration with artists also remains special, says Michael. “Since 2024, I have also been a publisher. Together with artists, I make editions, such as silkscreens or Giclee. That makes art more accessible: instead of 8,000 euros, the work costs 400 euros, for example.”

Last year he published an edition together with Jurriaan Molenaar – “in my opinion the greatest modern artist of Weesp” – just as he will do from 20 February. The edition 'Red Bench' was sold out within two weeks. “Later this year we will do editions with others, such as an artist from Amsterdam and an artist from Nigeria who is already known in London; Barry Yusufu, who has become world famous in a few years t + e time.”

'I always do thorough research'

The other artworks that Michael sells are often edition pieces, such as two Picasso works that have since been sold. There is a lot of theory behind this. “A signed Picasso costs around 15,000 euros. The works that I have on the website are official works that Picasso himself supervised, only they are not signed by hand, which makes them a lot more affordable.”

How do you know for sure that a work is authentic? “Editions are always well documented,” Michael explains. “They are recorded, there are witnesses and photographs. That often makes them more reliable. Of course, there are also forgeries - even with forged signatures - but I always do thorough research.”

Edition works are numbered. “There are different ways to do this. You have the standard Arabic numbering, but sometimes Roman numbering or a special alphabetical numbering. Sometimes you see two identical prints with different types of numbering, but if a certain numbering is not in the official documentation, then something is wrong. Then it is either false, or there has been a mistake.”

If he can’t prove its authenticity, Michael won’t sell it. Has it ever almost gone wrong? “Yes, that was last year with a large Dalı. I had practically sold it, but I hesitated. It was hand-numbered, but I couldn’t find the numbering methods in the book. I couldn’t imagine it being a forgery, because it was a complicated technique that is difficult to copy. But because I couldn’t prove it 100 percent and because the signature was slightly different from what I was used to, I decided not to take the risk.”

ladder

About ninety percent of the buyers of the editions of Molenaar are loyal Weespers, Michael estimates. He himself has been a Weesper again for two years, when he and his girlfriend moved here from Bussum. “I used to live in Weesp and went to primary school here for a while, but I grew up in Naarden.”

Michael speaks highly of Weesp. “It’s really nice here. I don’t really like the hustle and bustle of the city. I like the sense of community that Weesp still has. When I sit outside, I can just greet people. People say ‘enjoy your meal’ when you’re eating outside. That doesn’t happen in the middle of a city.”

The artist is therefore in the right place here. Grinning, he says: “We are currently doing some renovations in the store and I notice: as soon as there is even one ladder in the store, customers think I am going to stop.” But no, that is not the plan. “Every three years I look at what I can do differently to keep it exciting and inspiring.”