“Driven by German Design” exhibition at Qatar Museums, 3 October 2017 – 14 January 2018

Volkswagen Group Head of Design Michael Mauer with Sheika Al Mayassa.

  • Highlight of the “Germany Qatar 2017- Year of Culture” organized by Qatar Museums and the German Federal Foreign Ministry
  • Innovative and multi-faceted show celebrates the evolution and achievements of al-most 70 years of German design history including studies and prototypes that have never been shown before.
  • Extensive supporting education program with German design experts

Doha, Qatar/Wolfsburg, Germany, 04-Oct-2017 — /EuropaWire/ — Qatar Museums welcomes visitors to the “Driven by German Design” exhibition at the Al Riwaq Gallery from tomorrow on. The show will be running in Doha from 3 October 2017 – 14 January 2018.  As partner of the exhibition Volkswagen Group played a major role in bringing the innovative concept to life. The opening yesterday was attended by HE Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Chairperson of Qatar Museums, former German president Christian Wulff, Hans-Udo Muzel, German ambassador to Qatar, and Matthias Müller, Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen Group.

“Driven by German Design” showcases design concepts and objects created in Germany or developed by German designers since 1945. The exhibition brings together for the first time different design disciplines including architecture, graphic design, product design, automotive design, fashion and furniture design. It offers visitors a range of insights into both the artistic value of developments in design as well as their cultural significance.

HE Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani said: “The Driven by German Design exhibition brings the best of German culture to the people of Qatar and the region by celebrating more than six decades of the country’s most famous design icons. This landmark design show is a major highlight of the Qatar Germany 2017 Year of Culture and typical of the world-class exhibitions and events that Qatar Museums is increasingly famous for delivering to the highest standard. Its success is the result of deep collaboration between an enormous range of partners and truly demonstrates the rich cultural relationships between our two countries.”

The show embodies the ambitious vision of its curator Martin Roth who sadly passed away during the final stages of the show’s development. Roth is considered one of the most innovative and active cultural managers of the last decades. As director of world-famous museums in Dresden and London, he was committed to creating engaging platforms for a wide audience and encouraging them to experience and be inspired by art.

“This retrospective of almost 70 years of German design has a close connection with Volkswagen Group and its brands. Many of our vehicles have given expression to the Zeitgeist of their era as well as shaping German cultural identity. This will continue to be our aspiration for the future, as digitization and new drive concepts affect automotive and industrial design. We are thrilled that “Driven by German Design” offers visitors a hands-on experience and in this way directly appeals to their individual potential for innovation”, noted Matthias Müller, Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen Group, at the opening of the exhibition in Doha.

The exhibition documents the development of design in Germany based on the pioneering works of Frei Otto, Achim Menges, Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, Dieter Rams, Richard Sapper, Max Bill and many others. Though it does not claim to be exhaustive, it presents the widest possible range of design forms. Visitors to the exhibition are invited to take a closer look at the designers’ methods and try out their own ideas at Doha’s Al Riwaq gallery.

Over 400 exhibits will be displayed in total, including a number of studies and prototypes that have never before been shown in public. Five exhibition areas are dedicated to the most important periods of post-war German design and showcase the works of more than 30 designers that have influenced design history in both Germany and around the world.

A design lab at the center of the exhibition, which was co-developed by Volkswagen AG, provides a window into design processes. For example, visitors can experience how an idea is generated and led through the developmental stages leading up to production based on a chair design by Konstantin Grcic and several prototypes  from industrial designer Stefan Diez.

To underline Volkswagen Group Culture’s strong commitment to education, workshops and talks focusing on the theoretical and practical aspects of design will be held by experts such as Dr. Mateo Kries, Director of the Vitra Design Museum, and Prof. Lutz Fügener from the Pforzheim University of Applied Sciences. Among other things, university students from Germany and Qatar will be given the opportunity to work on a project together with the world-renowned Porsche Design Studio.

“Driven by German Design” is one of the highlights of the “German Season”, under which the Emirate of Qatar has invited Germany to be a partner to the 2017 Year of Culture. This year-long programme, developed by Qatar Museums and the German Foreign Ministry is made up of a wide variety of exhibitions and events in addition to literary and art workshops, film screenings, concerts, performances and sports competitions.

Photos of the exhibition:

https://transfer.rethink.berlin/data/public/germandesign

SOURCE: Volkswagen

Contact

Volkswagen Group Communications
Head of Culture and Society

Contact Benita von Maltzahn
Phone +49 (0) 53 61 9-893 18
Mail benita.von.maltzahn@volkswagen.de

Volkswagen Group Communications
Spokersperson Culture and Society

Contact Esra Aydin
Phone +49 1525-887 0025
Mail esra.aydin@volkswagen.de

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