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Red Dot Award Ceremony 2023
We look back on a successful 2023, which was characterised by creativity and innovation, and in which international cooperation and cultural exchange took centre stage.
This year we intensified our relations with Japan, starting with the award of the honorary title “Red Dot: Personality Prize” to Hiroshi Ishibashi and later with the special exhibition “The KOUBA Principle: The Foundations of Japanese Design in the Tsubame-Sanjo Region”. Further highlights were the Red Dot Galas in Essen, Singapore and Berlin as well as the reopening of the Red Dot Design Museum in Xiamen, which were not only a celebration of outstanding design, but also an opportunity to establish new contacts and deepen them.
Above all, the large number of guests who travelled to each of our events from different countries to celebrate and discuss with us proves once again that design can bring people together, no matter where they come from and how different their individual lives are. While there are still many problems to be solved, we are certain that there is only one way to create the best conditions for innovation: Together.
Highest design quality at the Red Dot Award: Product Design 2023
We were delighted to welcome all 43 jurors from 20 countries to Essen for the judging process. All experts share their design expertise, acquired during their careers as professors, consultants, industrial designers or journalists. The lively discussions in 2023 were characterised by a collegial, friendly and respectful atmosphere, which led to outstanding competition results. As part of the award ceremony, all the winners were announced worldwide. All results of the Red Dot Award: Product Design 2023 can be viewed here.
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Award ceremony with international appeal
The Red Dot Gala was hosted by Professor Dr. Peter Zec, founder and CEO of Red Dot, who, together with the jurors Mårten Claesson, Adriana Monk and Gordon Bruce, presented the Red Dot trophies to the winners of the competition's highest distinction, the Red Dot: Best of the Best.
Particularly charming this year were the performance skills of Nico Gerstmayer, who played Emmanuel Séjourné’s piece “Attraction” on the Adams Alpha Marimba, which was awarded a Red Dot in 2023, and the Aalto Ballet, who entertained the audience with scenes from Edward Clug's “Mutual Comfort”.
The grand finale of the gala was the announcement of the Design Team of the Year, Logitech. Under the leadership of Chief Design Officer Alastair Curtis, the Swiss-based company has established itself as a design brand with a focus on quality and innovation. Peter Skillman, Global Head of Design at Philips, handed over the “Radius” challenge cup on the stage of the Aalto Theatre.
After the gala, the celebration continued with the Designers’ Night at the Red Dot Design Museum in Essen, which was far bigger this year than ever before. Three halls on the grounds of the Zeche Zollverein offered the top of the international design scene a place to celebrate. The beer garden was particularly popular in the mid-summer temperatures, as well as the dance floor, which didn’t stay empty thanks to DJ CHRISSI D, who created a great atmosphere among the party-loving guests.
During the after-show party, the winners also had the opportunity to discover their award-winning products in the museum. They were the first guests to visit the three special exhibitions “Milestones in Contemporary Design 2023-2024”, “Design on Stage 2023-2024” and the exhibition “Defy Logic”, which was specially created by the Red Dot: Design Team of the Year.
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Hiroshi Ishibashi receives the “Red Dot: Personality Prize”
This year, we celebrated the award of the honorary title “Red Dot: Personality Prize” together. Since 2020, this title has been awarded to a creative leader who has managed to initiate a major change, seize opportunities and create something new. In this spirit, this year it was awarded to Hiroshi Ishibashi, who was honoured for his commitment to recognising and promoting the value of design.
You can find out more about Hiroshi Ishibashi here.
Red Dot Gala in Singapore
On 27 September the award ceremony continued in Singapore. Designers from all over the world gathered at the Red Dot Design Museum Singapore to celebrate their successes and discover the award-winning ideas, visions and concepts in the museum at the famous Marina Bay. The competition's highest distinction, the coveted Red Dot: Luminary was awarded to Lunet, a mechanical finger prosthesis that is entirely 3D printed and provides an accessible solution for restoring finger functionality. Peter Zec and Ken Koo presented the Red Dot: Luminary Trophy to David Edquilang and Prof. Jeff Feng from the University of Houston.
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Japanese design at the Red Dot Design Museum Essen: The KOUBA principle
We are particularly pleased about the design classics from the Tsubame-Sanjo region, which are on display in the special exhibition “The KOUBA Principle: The Foundations of Japanese Design in the Tsubame-Sanjo Region” at the Red Dot Design Museum in Essen. To the opening of the special exhibition, we welcomed several representatives from Japan, including Ryo Takizawa, Mayor of Sanjo City. The exhibition focuses on knives, tools and other metal products made in the workshops (Japanese: KOUBA) of the traditional industrial region of Tsubame-Sanjo. At the exhibition, visitors can view the metal products and learn about the manufacturing processes to gain an insight into the metallurgical industry in the Tsubame-Sanjo region. The exhibition is open until 21 January 2024 at the Red Dot Design Museum Essen.
Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design
Let's take a look back at the beginning of the year: In February, the exhibition “World's Best Communication Design 2022 and Highlights from NRW” opened at the Red Dot Design Museum in Essen. The exhibition showcased communication design works from more than 30 countries, all of which were awarded at the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design 2022. The highlight of the exhibition was the presentation of the agency MetaDesign, the Red Dot: Agency of the Year 2022. The vernissage was introduced with a presentation of selected works by Peter Zec.
The judging process of the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design 2023 took place in July this year. There was a particular spectacle during the selection of the Red Dot: Junior Prize, which is decided each year by all the jurors in a joint vote. This year, the jury voted almost unanimously and awarded the Junior Prize to Marie-Luise Charlotte Weier from the University of Ravensburg DHBW, who impressed the jury across the board with her extraordinary project “PYRY”, a frozen book.
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Red Dot Gala at the Konzerthaus Berlin
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This year's winners of the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design were finally honoured on 3 November 2023. Guests from around 30 nations accepted the invitation to the festive Red Dot Gala. Professor Dr. Peter Zec hosted the evening and, together with the Red Dot judges Kelley Cheng, Thilo von Debschitz and Alison Park Douglas, presented the Red Dot Trophies to the winners of the highest distinction. The Red Dot: Grand Prix, the highest individual award in the competition, was presented six times this year. You can find all the winners here.
This year's honorary title “Red Dot: Agency of the Year” went to the Dutch agency CLEVER°FRANKE, which was founded in 2008 by Thomas Clever and Gert Franke. “In the design industry, there are some key issues that require attention: the ethical handling of misinformation, the promotion of diverse collaborations and a strong focus on accessibility. From our perspective, data visualisation can have a positive impact on the world primarily through the way we present and talk about information,” the agency describes its work. One example of this is “Voices from the Frontlines”, a website that visualises research results for climate mobility in Africa in an understandable way and was awarded a Red Dot: Best of the Best in 2023. The two founders accepted the “Stylus” in person from Daniel Leyser, Global CEO of last year's Red Dot: Agency of the Year MetaDesign, at the gala in the Konzerthaus Berlin.
Special exhibition “Best Brands & Communication Design - Red Dot Winners Selection 2023”
The exhibition opening ceremony took place on 4 November 2023 at the Museum of Communication in Berlin. The best projects awarded in the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design 2023 will be exhibited here until 14 January 2024. Professor Dr. Peter Zec gave a short presentation at the opening, in which he presented some of the projects separately:
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Reopening of the Red Dot Design Museum in Xiamen
A special moment was the reopening of the Red Dot Design Museum Xiamen on 28 November, which opened its doors to visitors again after relocating within the Chinese port city. Peter Zec opened the museum and welcomed the guests on site. A special feature is the exhibition “The Power of Design”, which gives an insight into international, award-winning product design and provides basic knowledge and information on topics such as trends and innovation.
Exclusive dinner in Taiwan
Taiwan's diverse business landscape, including industry giants such as Acer, Asus, Cooler Master and consumer goods manufacturers such as Wonderland, Shengtai Brassware and Nien Made, have already been awarded at the Red Dot Award. Peter Zec personally invited to a round table, to honour the outstanding achievements in design and in the competition. Our long-standing relationship with Taiwan reflects the impressive innovative strength of the Taiwanese design landscape. Both sides aim to deepen and expand this relationship to intensify collaboration and promote excellence in the design industry. The partnership aims to drive design innovation and promote the exchange of expertise to set new standards in international design.
The Red Dot Design Yearbook 2023/24 captures the essence of design excellence and showcases the best products of 2023, taking the reader on a captivating journey into the world of cars, consumer electronics, furniture, industrial tools and more.
Design that connects: Essen - Singapore - Berlin - Xiamen - and the rest of the world
The Red Dot Design Award is no longer only at home in Essen. This year, too, numerous events took place all around the globe. The Red Dot Design Award celebrates the award-winning ideas, products and their designers and also strengthens the connection between creative minds worldwide. This year, we have seen impressive design and outstanding talent, as well as the power of international collaboration and cultural exchange, building bridges between cultures. Overall, 2023 was a year of aesthetic innovation, as well as critical reflection and commitment to positive change.
We look forward to discovering fascinating and inspiring designs from around the world next year. With that in mind, here’s to a new year of creative ideas, innovation and collaboration.
Outlook for 2024
Designers and companies from all over the world can still enter their best products for the Red Dot Award: Product Design 2024 until 12 January 2024.
The Red Dot Gala will take place on 24 June 2024 in Essen.
Entries for the Red Dot Award: Design Concept 2024 are already open. The early bird phase runs until 23 January, the regular registration period ends on 13 March and latecomers will be accepted until 24 April 2024.
The Red Dot Gala in Singapore will take place on 2 October 2024.
Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design
The registration phase for the international competition for brand and communication design starts in February 2024.
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