Genesis won an impressive four Red Dot awards this year, all within the Brands & Communication Design discipline, the brand announced Thursday.
Genesis Suji, Genesis Anseong and Genesis House New York each received a Red Dot award for Retail Design, and an art installation inspired by the GV60 electric vehicle won in Spatial Communication. The recent win constitutes global recognition that Genesis expresses its brand identity visually in all its spaces and in the customer experience.
Most notably, Genesis Suji took home the “Red Dot: Best of the Best” award, one of the highest distinctions awarded by the jury. All these projects were designed for Genesis by Seoul-based architecture firm Suh Architects.
Created in 1955, the Red Dot open competition is one of the top three design distinctions in the world, alongside the iF Design Awards and the IDEA Design Awards. Each year, it announces winners in three distinct disciplines: Product Design, Brands & Communication Design, and Design Concept.
Since its launch in 2015, Genesis has steadily positioned itself as both a luxury automotive brand and a lifestyle brand that communicates a distinctly Korean ethos.
Brand Spaces That Resonate with Customers
By keeping its retail experiences fresh and explorative, Genesis is setting trends both in luxury lifestyles and brand storytelling. Its “customer-first” mindset informs the way it designs all its brand experiences.
Through its materials, its space and its programs, the Genesis Suji Showroom redefines the Korean auto customer experience. The four-story showroom’s 4,991 square meters serve simultaneously as an auto showcase, a service delivery platform and a test-drive center. It is the first space of its kind in Korea to combine a presentation with a service program.
The space offers prospective customers the chance to test-drive their cars of choice, while new owners can receive their brand-new vehicles in a private lounge with a special “car-delivery ceremony,” complete with robotic arms and a video display.
Genesis also proves that a branded space doesn’t need to be a standalone establishment to impress. Standing in stark contrast to a bright white mall environment, Genesis Anseong’s 663-square-meter showroom boldly frames the brand’s latest driving machines in a futuristic vision of design, sound and light while welcoming firsthand exploration of its highly engineered models.
Blending Brand and Culture
Referred to as a “sophisticated oasis in the heart of the city,” Genesis House New York is an intriguing sanctuary. There’s plenty to explore, from art installations to a modern take on traditional Korean dining, alongside Genesis’ latest automotive design lineup. You can even take part in a Korean tea ceremony while enjoying panoramic views of the Hudson River and the High Line.
According to Suh Architects, the House was not built solely for automotive enthusiasts.
“We were truly fortunate that the client, site, cultural program and partners like Onjium of Genesis House all lent themselves to creating a unique oasis of design and modern traditions that are worth gathering for,” said KyungEn Kim, principal architect at Suh Architects.
“We love that this project creates a conversation with New York by layering contours. The ground floor façade is about celebrating Genesis’ shimmering curves and drawing visitors in. The second floor’s floating Korean roofscape outlines different zones for eating, reading, resting with its sloping louvers — the envelope is porous enough to feel sheltered, yet open, like sitting on a verandah.”
Architecturally, Genesis House is the pinnacle of the brand’s design identity. It reflects the understated elegance that Genesis is known for, showing restraint in its use of decorative elements and focusing on materials such as exposed concrete, weathered steel and solid wood.
Conceptually, the space offers layers of perspectives, sitting at a cultural intersection on the Hudson where all are invited to experience Korean design and hospitality. As Genesis’ first brand center, Genesis House engages New Yorkers in a conversation about design and mobility as it invites customers to explore and enjoy.
Spatial Communication Campaign
Genesis communicates with the world through its differentiated retail designs, but also through its unique way of conceptual storytelling.
When the GV60 — the brand’s first electric vehicle based on a dedicated EV platform — launched in September of last year, it was lauded for its innovative design. One of the model’s most notable features is the Crystal Sphere. Located in the center of the vehicle, it allows the driver to shift gears, control the ignition and control media preferences.
Genesis created a GV60 campaign concept that focused on the Crystal Sphere. An accompanying art installation featured 400 x 400 x 80 modules made of double-sided dichroic film that could transform any site it occupied with iridescent reflections that create their own shifting spaces.
This “traveling installation” was first showcased in Genesis Hanam before moving to Genesis Suji. Most recently it traveled to Genesis House New York to mark the GV60’s U.S. debut.