The airport in Mülheim becomes a race track: jury members test vehicles
The time has come: The registration phase of the Red Dot Award: Product Design 2018 is completed and the jury is waiting in suspense for the assessment of the products. The jurors Lutz Fügener, Ken Okuyama and Martin Darbyshire especially look forward to the judging process in the category “Cars and motorcycles” as they will not only observe the submissions, but also test them. At the airport in Mülheim an der Ruhr, the experts for means of transportation will drive the cars, test the multimedia and communications facilities and take a critical look at the interior and exterior design. After a careful weighing and a critical exchange, the submissions are appraised individually.
Martin Darbyshire on the meaning of the Red Dot
“At any stage in your career, winning a Red Dot is very special, as a designer. It is a good feeling to know that your peers have judged you worthy of an award, especially a Red Dot award which carries such prestige within the design and commercial community”, says design expert Martin Darbyshire who is aware of his responsibilities as juror. The founder of the design consultancy tangerine contributes to the high quality level of the Red Dot Award: Product Design. With award-winning solutions, he and his team already delighted customers such as LG, Samsung, Hyundai, Toyota and Nikon, who are renowned worldwide.
Lutz Fügener: design is more than just the appearance
Also Lutz Fügener has years of experience in the design industry. His office studioFT concentrates on the “Transportation Design” sector. In 2000, Fügener was appointed as Professor of Transportation Design/3D Design by Pforzheim University and there chairs the BA degree course in transportation design. “In my opinion, good design is defined by a symbiotic synergy of function and aesthetics”, said Fügener during the jury session in 2016. Thereby, he emphasises the need to drive the submitted vehicles as design is way more than just the mere appearance.
Automotive expert Ken Okuyama
Just as his two colleagues, Ken Okuyama can look forward to the assessment of the vehicles. He studied automobile design at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, and worked as Chief Designer for General Motors, as Senior Designer for Porsche AG, and as Design Director for Pininfarina. He was responsible for the design of the Ferrari Enzo, Maserati Quattroporte and many other automobiles. In 2007, the designer founded his own company KEN OKUYAMA DESIGN. On the question which developments he would like to see in car design in the future, he answered: “By shifting to electric vehicles or some other energy source, the proportions of a car can become entirely different from those of cars with internal combustion engines.” And especially this would make the assessment so exciting as one would get to know “unexpected ideas and products”.
Publication of the awarded products and tribute to the winners
Designers and companies who could convince the three experts with their outstanding designs can look forward to the award ceremony on 9 July 2018. From this day on, the award-winning products can be found in the Online Exhibition and in the Red Dot Design Yearbook.
