Edmond Hustinx (1898–1984) was a remarkable figure: an entrepreneur, inventor, art lover, and a man with a strong belief in the power of science. In 1931, he took over the Maastricht soap factory Hustinx NV from his father. The factory, initially located on the Looiersgracht and later in the Bosscherveld, was doing very well. Until the Second World War made it virtually impossible to obtain raw materials. This forced creativity and ultimately led to the development of modern synthetic detergents.
In 1946, Hustinx introduced a continuously rotating kiln for producing water glass and metasilicate, raw materials for detergents. His innovation attracted international attention and led to business ventures and licensing in Germany, France, and far beyond. Hustinx acquired numerous patents and was encouraged by Nobel Prize winner Peter Debye for his ability to connect disciplines and transform waste materials into valuable products.
Although he initially began studying medicine in Amsterdam, where he also explored philosophy and chemistry, he felt most at home in the world of invention and creation. Art was his relaxation: he painted, photographed, filmed, and made music. From 1915 onward, he took lessons from Eugène Lücker. In the years that followed, he developed a distinctive drawing style with subdued colors, which later gave way to oil painting in the Limburg tradition.
His success enabled him to support others. Hustinx established prizes for music, visual arts, and science. These prizes were always linked to Maastricht and primarily intended for young talent at the beginning of a promising career. To ensure this continued support, he established the Edmond Hustinx Foundation in 1961. He wanted his ideals, namely the promotion of culture and knowledge, to live on even after his death. The current board continues to faithfully pursue this approach.
As a person, Edmond Hustinx was anything but ordinary. Unmarried, he lived with three brothers, also unmarried, and his sister Henriëtte in their modest family home on the Looiersgracht. He possessed a vivid imagination, original thinking, and an admirable courage to actually implement new ideas. He considered it an honor to contribute more to art and science as a relatively small manufacturer than many large industries of the time. At times, he was generous in grand gestures. For example, he made a substantial contribution to the clock Edmundus in the carillon of the Basilica of Saint Servatius in Maastricht. But at the same time, he could be surprisingly reserved with small requests.
His candid, sometimes childlike charm made him both beloved and vulnerable. But without a doubt, he was someone who knew how to translate imagination, ingenuity, and generosity into social significance. Edmond Hustinx died on May 20, 1984, at the age of 85 in Venlo. But his mission lives on, in every artist and researcher who received a boost thanks to him.