"World’s Best Communication Design 2021–2022"

With the exhibition “World’s Best Communication Design 2021–2022”, the Red Dot Design Museum in Essen will showcase communication design works from more than 30 countries between 8 April and 29 May 2022. From books, adverts and posters to apps, websites and packaging, visitors to the exhibition can experience outstanding communication design in all of its nuances. All of the works presented in the exhibition have won a distinction in the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design 2021.

A decentralised exhibition full of highlights

A special feature of the exhibition is that it is not limited to one central location in the museum. Instead, visitors encounter the communication design works at different locations as they tour the museum. One of the exhibition’s focal points can be found on Level 1 and includes packaging design and the presentation by the Red Dot: Agency of the Year 2021, for example.

The exhibits include such diverse works as the new corporate design for the Munich Documentation Centre for the History of National Socialism, an ad campaign for car brand Mini, a distinctive new font inspired by the unique features of the Vietnamese alphabet and the brand presence of the Shevchenko National Prize, the main cultural award in Ukraine.

The year’s most successful agency comes from North Rhine-Westphalia

In 2021, the honorary title “Red Dot: Agency of the Year” was awarded to denkwerk, an owner-run digital agency founded in Cologne in 1998. It now has around 200 employees, with offices in Cologne, Hamburg, Berlin and Munich. “denkwerk impressively combines digital solutions with outstanding design as well as an enthusiasm for experimentation”, explains Professor Dr. Peter Zec, Founder and CEO of the Red Dot Award. “The agency’s work displays great creativity and digital expertise while also always being focused on the best possible user experience.” It has already done award-winning work for clients such as DeepL, Motel One, the Otto Group and the YOU Foundation. In the exhibition in Essen, denkwerk will present its very own digital installation.

Award-winning design made in NRW 

In the competition year 2021, one quarter of all works that received a Red Dot: Best of the Best came from North Rhine-Westphalia. The same German state also accounted for almost ten per cent of all winners globally. In addition, the Agency of the Year 2021, denkwerk, has its head office in Cologne. These results show the strength of North Rhine-Westphalia not just at national level but also in a global comparison. Examples of winners from NRW include the brands GIRA from Radevormwald as well as METRO Wholesale and M:ID from Düsseldorf. In addition, an upcoming designer from North Rhine-Westphalia was the recipient of a Red Dot: Best of the Best. Lara Wilkin from Gladbeck won the distinction for her master’s project “#LazarusEffect”, which impressively illustrates global species extinction in great detail.