Feast your mind and open your eyes to what’s missing in the world around you. Gather those loose, floating thoughts and walk them slowly through. Who knows? Maybe you can be a designer too—if you dare.



Title: red dot Design Concept Yearbook 2007/2008
Publisher: Red Dot Singapore Pte Ltd
Editor: Ken Khoo


All things, great or small, begins with an idea. The red dot Design Concept Yearbook 2007/2008 pays tribute to the workers of concept; that group of individuals who derive moldbreaking solutions based on their understanding of the needs of society. The award, since its inception more than 50 years ago in Germany, faced exponential growth in terms of global exposure this year: 884 entries from 48 countries. It is a noteworthy 86% surge over last year’s entries.

There are a handful of prestigious design competitions, with the bulk of them originating from the United States and Europe. Not many though, segregate product design in such precise categories of life’s minutia: Mobility, recreation, education, domestic aid, habitat, green, illumination, etc. In total, there are 14 competition categories, in which some entries overlap.

For instance, Korean designer Park Sangwoo’s Loofen Packy for Food Waste, a nifty food waste packaging device, could easily come under domestic aid and green categories. Whoever had to contend with mountain-loads of foul-smelling trash bags would certainly appreciate having this smart helper around the house.

Under Illumination, Thai designer Kaysorn’s organic design of a ceramic bone china lamp, inspired by tropical pollen, wouldn’t be out of place in an interior accessories shop.

Some designs address the annoyances brought about by technology, such as the Cord Trap, which guides wayward cables and cords to where they belong; and Raise Me Up, a power board that allows users to remove electrical plugs with ease.

At red dot, the depth of the ideas and dexterity of execution is highly respected. It does not matter that some designs come across as more whimsical than practical. After all, form is meant to follow function, though not quite similar in proportions. Even the best-designed product can get mixed reviews when it comes to the final test: The intended consumer. In the first place, the task of persuasion is not easy and relies on attractive images and concise narrative for support.

It is perhaps fairer to say that these concepts have been successful in allowing the layman credible insight into the thought process of designers, who often have the unenviable task of having to explain something as ephemeral and intangible as an idea.

This annual has compressed complex ideas and research into manageable bite-size snippets so the essence of the products is not buried so deep under excessive technical jargon that it loses the reader.

Only when the story is comprehended can the reader start to marvel at how a single idea grows to full blossom.

A good idea should be left too long to come to fruition—it could die in a blink of fatal laziness, stolen by an unscrupulous hand or drown in the sea of redundancy. Let us celebrate the blood, sweat and novelty; let us be inspired by the best this generation of creators has to offer.

















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