Design night of the year: glamorous celebration of the winners of the Red Dot Award and the Ferrari Design Team
The year’s best designers and manufacturers, the winners of the Red Dot Award: Product Design 2019, were duly celebrated on 8 July. The international design scene convened in Essen on the occasion of the award ceremony to crown those blazing a trail in the industry. During the Red Dot Gala, the laureates of the Red Dot: Best of the Best received their trophies in front of around 1,200 international guests in the Aalto-Theater. In addition, Flavio Manzoni and the Ferrari Design Team were officially named Red Dot: Design Team of the Year 2019. The subsequent Designers’ Night provided an opportunity for dancing, networking and discovering the award-winning designs.
Honouring the top performers in design in Essen’s opera house
The products that won the Red Dot: Best of the Best stood out from over 5,500 entries thanks to their ground-breaking design. The jury awarded this highest distinction in the competition to just 80 products. The designers and manufacturers behind these outstanding achievements were celebrated as part of the Red Dot Gala. They accepted their well-deserved trophies on stage at the Aalto-Theater to appreciative applause.
In addition to the winners, Professor Dr. Peter Zec, founder and CEO of the Red Dot Award, welcomed three of the roughly 40 jury members on stage: Nils Toft, Founder and Managing Director of Designidea, Stefan Eckstein, Founder and CEO of Eckstein Design, and Prof. Dr. Ken Nah, Design Professor at IDAS, Hongik University. Together with the host, the industry experts congratulated the proud winners on their success in the competition.
High point of the evening: honouring the Ferrari Design Team
The event culminated in the official honours for the Red Dot: Design Team of the Year 2019. Flavio Manzoni and the Ferrari Design Team have been producing consistently excellent designs for years, repeatedly winning over the jury with aesthetic and innovative sports cars that have earned respect. Head of Design Manzoni and his crew made a characteristically powerful appearance that featured Manzoni driving on stage in the award-winning Monza SP1, followed by his entire team and receiving rapturous applause. 2018 title holder Andreas Diefenbach from Phoenix Design then passed on the “Radius” challenge cup to his successors, thus officially crowning them as Red Dot: Design Team of the Year 2019.
Designers’ Night in the Red Dot Design Museum
At the Designers’ Night, the focus was on the winners of the Red Dot and the Honourable Mention, as they received their certificates in the Red Dot Design Museum at the Zollverein World Heritage Site. The after-show party gave an opportunity to party, dance and network in the midst of the award-winning products. Guests had an exclusive sneak preview of three special exhibitions prior to their official opening on 12 July. They were able to try out some of the award-winning products and appreciate their outstanding design quality.
For example, visitors were permitted to test the “Teslasuit”, a full body haptic suit from VR Electronics, and understand how it supports improved motion, reflexes and instincts. They could also try out the “Ujet” electric scooter by the manufacturer of the same name. Those who wanted to prove their DIY skills were able to see how little energy is needed to use the wooden “TENZ® Low-Energy Screw”.
Top achievements on show in Essen until 25 August
The exhibitions in the Red Dot Design Museum reflect the state of the art as well as current trends in product design. While “Milestones in Contemporary Design 2019” presents the products that have won the Red Dot: Best of the Best, “Design on Stage 2019” shows all of the objects that received a Red Dot or an Honourable Mention. In the exhibition designed by Ferrari Design, “Designing Dreams: Ferrari Design Team”, the design team of the year showcases its outstanding achievements. The exhibitions are on show at the museum until 25 August.