Maj van der Linden: Space in Motion

Maj’s practice – bridging interior design, curation and craft – is grounded in a lifelong sensitivity to space. “I remember details from my childhood – a stair rail made of small round tiles, the asphalt floor in our first kitchen, the orange and blue mirrors in a 70s swimming pool.” Surface, structure and the atmosphere of a room have always held her attention.

As a teenager, she began furnishing her flat with vintage pieces, first found on the street, then sourced online. “At first it was things from the street, then we found Italian design pieces on eBay. People started asking if I could help – back then I didn’t think of it as a job.” There was no formal path into design. “I’m self-taught. The joy in shaping spaces and seeing things come to life has always been there.” Eventually, she put a simple website online. “I just wanted to see what might happen. And quite quickly, the first commissions came in.”

As it’s evolved over the decades, Maj’s approach to space-making has remained rooted in observation and instinct. When approaching a design brief, she begins by listening – to the surroundings, the people, and the possibilities that arise between them. “There are three key elements for me,” she says, “the people, the space, and what wants to happen in it. All three have to come together.” Listening is essential – both to those she’s designing for and to what the room seems to suggest.

“The best projects often come from people who’ve lived a lot,” she reflects. “They already have a strong sense of what they want, and I simply help them find it.” Many collaborations take shape through conversation rather than visual references. “I think it’s important to play the ball back and forth,” she adds. “This kind of mutual thinking – that’s what matters.” Her aesthetic remains fluid, guided by curiosity. “I never wanted to stick to one fixed style,” she explains. That interest in variation is deliberate. “I love the freedom to try new things – I find energy in diversity.”

Much of her inspiration comes from observing others at work. “I’m always most inspired when I see people in their element – using their tools, doing what they do best,” she says. “There’s a certain magic in that,” she says. Collaboration keeps her connected to that energy. “My biggest source of inspiration is working closely with artists,” she continues. “I love stepping into their worlds and letting something unfold from there.”

Maj doesn’t aim to control how a room looks or feels. “I prefer when people can’t quite put their finger on why they feel good in a room – they just do,” she reflects. The work, she says, lies in shaping an experience without over-defining it. “It’s important to me that a space supports what happens in it. It shouldn’t be so loud that it overwhelms what you want to do inside.”

Light is often the first thing Maj considers in a project – both its source and how it moves and where it falls. “It’s incredibly important,” she says. “People often start by saying they want everything evenly lit – but no one feels comfortable in that kind of light.”

Instead of aiming for uniformity, she uses illumination to create focus and flow throughout a room. “I try to work with it in a way that sets a mood – over the table, in winter, in everyday moments,” she explains. “It can be a kind of magic.” The right decision can elevate a space; the wrong one can flatten it. “It can ruin the most beautiful room – or completely transform it,” she notes.

Material, too, leaves a lasting impression. “I still remember the feel of the asphalt floor in my old kitchen – that tactile sense stayed with me,” she recalls. Objects with purpose have always held her interest. “I’ve always been drawn to things that are functional. I probably couldn’t have named it that at the time, but I felt it instinctively.”

This sensitivity to material and atmosphere extends into the gallery itself, which has grown into a platform for contemporary material practice – from furniture and ceramics to textiles and lighting.
The roster includes emerging and established voices such as Studio JUMI, Veronika Janovec, and Marlies von Soden, alongside makers like Sanghyeok Lee, Studio Cúze, Natalie Brehmer, and Zeynep Boyan, whose work explores the expressive potential of form and function.

“Most of the artists we work with, we’ve known for a long time,” Maj says. “That’s essential for building trust and developing something together.” The gallery frequently collaborates with design-led practices including Berlin creative studio Paleworks – co-curators of the current exhibition, FLOW – ANALOG glass, Lehni, faustlight, and Obscure Objects – each contributing to an evolving inquiry on how objects shape space.

Maj values the way the gallery holds evidence of shifts over time. “I like that it’s still evolving – there are still corners that make you think: something else could happen here,” she says. A leafy courtyard garden at the back of the gallery flourished from a partnership with Berlin’s Royal Garden Academy in 2023. New connections continue to form. “The selection is curated, but there’s also openness,” she explains. “Some artists reach out directly, others come through recommendations – there are many paths.” In addition to serving as a showroom for finished pieces, the gallery aims to share context and process. “We try to create deeper understanding of the processes and the people behind the work,” Maj notes.

Change is built into the gallery architecture. “The space is allowed to change,” she says. “I want it to stay in motion.” This approach carries through the current exhibition, FLOW, developed in collaboration with Yağmur Ruzgar and Ozan Akkoyun, the duo behind Paleworks. At its centre is a modular bent-steel system the pair designed during their time at Bauhaus University in Weimar. The structure sets a tone through the gallery – holding some works, interrupting others, and inviting various uses.

Alongside the installation are new works by artists from the gallery’s circle: Sanghyeok Lee’s Arc series, which abstracts everyday furniture forms; Natalie Brehmer’s blown-glass pieces that echo breath and repetition; Veronika Janovec’s fractured and reassembled ceramics; and Studio JUMI’s woven textiles, which reinterpret Bauhaus techniques using unexpected materials.

In bringing together intensely varied materials, forms and approaches, the gallery functions as a living framework – responsive to the present with an eye on what’s to come. “Berlin is no longer the city it was in the 90s or early 2000s,” Maj reflects. “But the question now is: what defines creativity today?”

Over the past five years in particular, she’s sensed a renewed desire for connection. “You can feel people craving it again. Maybe now is the time to create new ways of coming together.” The creative landscape is shifting, and new possibilities can feel increasingly out of reach. “We hear people say they want more exchange,” she says, “but there are fewer and fewer spaces where that’s actually possible.” Her focus is on keeping access visible. “There are well-established creatives, and there are young talents – but there’s little between. That’s the gap we want to keep alive.”

Her own pace has evolved alongside the gallery. “I’ve made a conscious effort to slow down – because I think there’s something important in what happens after the opening.” Each exhibition brings her lines of enquiry forward, but the guiding approach holds steady. “It’s always a bit different,” she says, “but over time you come to understand how things come together.” This ethos extends beyond the work on display. Students are invited in, tours are offered, connections are forged. “That’s part of our job too – to share what we’ve built.”

FLOW, a collaborative exhibition by MAJ VAN DER LINDEN and Berlin studio PaleWorks, is on view until 26 June 2025. The show presents a modular steel system as both structure and concept, alongside works by Sanghyeok Lee, Natalie Brehmer, Veronika Janovec and Studio JUMI. Located at Veteranenstrasse 15, 10119 Berlin, the gallery is open Fridays and Saturdays from 2–6pm or by appointment.