
Mid-January is nearly here again. Furniture manufacturers, designers and interior designers will once again be turning the halls of the imm cologne into a huge exhibition area. The D3 Talents design platform has long ceased to be an “inside tip” and is now widely regarded as a “must” for anyone with an interest in design. For at the D3 talent forum, visitors can discover products that are still waiting for their future: experimental designs, original creations and clever new construction principles developed by the most promising newcomers the design scene has to offer.
“With D3, we deliberately offer young designers a unique opportunity to present themselves to international experts, the media and companies,” says Gerald Böse, CEO of Koelnmesse. “Our commitment goes down well with the international design scene too. At the end of the day, it’s precisely this encounter between experimental design and the market-driven offerings of the furniture industry, the contrast between the commercial and the experimental, that makes the imm cologne so attractive to so many people,” adds the imm cologne’s Creative Director Dick Spierenburg.
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21. November 2011
Categories: young designers, [d3] design talents
Tags: design, Dick Spierenburg, furniture design, Gerald Böse, German Design Council, imm cologne 2012, Pierre Roset, young designers, [d3] contest, [d3] design talents, [d3] professionals
The assembled talent of the design scene at a glance: the Koelnmesse-sponsored website d3alumin.imm-cologne.de presents participants who have taken part in the D3 Design talents format between 2004 and 2011 – together with the product or installation they exhibited at imm cologne.
The D3 Alumni online platform offers a permanent update in young design and a staggering potential: so far 206 colleges and 390 designers and studios have taken part in the “D3 Professionals” forum and 335 graduates in the “D3 Contest”. Participants in the forerunner projects Future Point and inspired by cologne will of course be integrated as well. In compact form, the site presents all the products and faces that have featured in the imm cologne’s newcomer forum over the years.
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21. July 2011
Categories: young designers, [d3] design talents
Tags: D3 Alumni, design projects, imm cologne 2012, Koelnmesse, newcomer, online platform, products, profile, prototypes, young designers, [d3] contest, [d3] design talents, [d3] professionals, [d3] schools
Koelnmesse has commissioned the Rat für Formgebung/German Design Council to act as overseers and organizers of the young designers’ exhibition and prize at imm cologne 2012, the international furnishing show, which is named D3 Contest since five years and was formerly known as inspired by cologne.
Up to 30 new product designs, the work of design students and young designers from around the world, will be preselected and featured in a special exhibition for the ninth time. The jury for the design competition, the Interior Innovation Award 2012, (due to be held at imm cologne) will then choose the three most talented up-and-coming international designers for 2012 from these nominees.
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07. July 2011
Categories: Awards, Interior Innovation Award, young designers, [d3] design talents
Tags: applications, award, catalogue, imm cologne 2012, interior innovation award, Koelnmesse, registration form, young designers, [d3] contest, [d3] design talents
As part of the opening ceremony for imm cologne, the Best of Best in this year’s Interior Innovation Award were announced on 17 January 2011. In addition, the three best international up-and-coming designers were presented with the Interior Innovation Award. All award-winning products are being exhibited in special shows at imm cologne.
The large Boulevard of Innovations award exhibition along the northern boulevard presents the products that the jury awarded the “Winner 2011″ label as well as those from this preliminary selection proclaimed the 15 Best of Best 2011. The award-winning work of the three best newcomers together with around 30 prototypes from international up-and-coming designers can be seen in the [D3] Contest exhibition in Hall 3.2.
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19. January 2011
Categories: Awards, Interior Innovation Award, [d3] design talents
Tags: Andrej Kupetz, award, Barbara Friedrich, Cologne, design prize, designers, Gerhard Wolf, German Design Council, Giulio Ridolfo, imm cologne 2011, interior innovation award, jury, Koelnmesse, Sam Hecht, Tomoko Azumi, trade fair, young designers, [d3] contest
The assembled talent of the design scene at a glance: the Koelnmesse-sponsored website d3alumni.imm-cologne.de presents participants who have taken part in the D3 Design talents format between 2004 and 2011 – together with the product or installation they exhibited. The potential is staggering: so far 206 colleges and 390 designers and studios have taken part in the “D3 Professionals” forum and 335 graduates in the “D3 Contest”.
Participants in the forerunner projects Future Point and inspired by cologne will of course be integrated as well. In compact form, the site presents all the products and faces that have featured in the imm cologne’s newcomer forum over the years. Participants in the D3 Contest, the D3 Professionals and the colleges from D3 Schools can post their profile and D3 contribution along with their contact details. To make the extensive data easier to navigate, the entries can be sorted by the categories Product Area, Participants, Type of Organisation and Year.
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18. January 2011
Categories: Social Media, young designers, [d3] design talents
Tags: Cologne, D3 Alumni, imm cologne 2011, platform, talented designers, the D3 Professionals, young designers, [d3] contest, [d3] design talents, [d3] schools
In 2011 D³ Design talents will be staged for the sixth time at imm cologne. This event for young designers, which consists of the three areas D³ Professionals, D³ Contest and D³ Schools, will generate momentum for the interior design of tomorrow. The inspiring and visionary designs that are presented here will be flanked and supported by other events and installations.
One innovation that will be introduced next January will be a form of presentation that aims to connect young designers even more closely with the trade fair activities. The designs of the winners of the D3 Contest will be presented in the pure village area rather than at the previous venue in the lower area of Hall 3. The stands of the D³ Professionals will also be placed nearby, in a “neighbourhood” of their own located one level higher in Hall 3.2. The intimate atmosphere and well-planned trade fair architecture of the pure village exhibition format, which was introduced in 2010, offers an ideal framework for the firework of ideas and unconventional designs generated by the next generation of interior designers.
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13. October 2010
Categories: pure village, young designers, [d3] design talents
Tags: Cologne, Congress Centre East, creativity, furniture fair, hall 3, imm cologne 2011, interior design, new ideas, next generation, pure village, trade fair, trade show, visionary design, young designers, [d3] contest, [d3] design talents, [d³] professionals, [d³] schools
Koelnmesse has commissioned the Rat für Formgebung/German Design Council to act as overseers and organizers of the young designers’ exhibition and prize at imm cologne 2011, international furnishing show which is named D3 Contest since four years and was formerly known as inspired by cologne.
Up to 30 new product designs, the work of design students and young designers from around the world, will be preselected and featured in a special exhibition for the eighth time. The jury for the exhibitor prize, the interior innovation award cologne 2011, (due to be held at imm cologne) will then choose the three most talented up-and-coming international designers for 2011 from these nominees. A catalogue will be published on the occasion of the exhibition and the nominated participants will be actively involved in the press activities associated with imm cologne. Entry deadline is September, 19th, 2010
Application form: http://www.german-design-council.de/fileadmin/Ausschreibungen/D3Contest2011_application_form_s.pdf
04. August 2010
Categories: young designers, [d3] design talents
Tags: award, catalogue, contest, exhibition, exhibitor prize, German Design Council, imm cologne 2011, interior innovation award cologne 2011, international furnishing show, Koelnmesse, students, young designers, [d3] contest
The talent forum [D3] Design talents shows which way the wind is blowing. At the imm cologne, young designers get the chance to present their original product ideas alongside the established stars of the furniture industry.
Design lives from a constant stream of new ideas. And sometimes from the reinvention of old ones. What’s crucial is a constant change of perspectives that questions what has already been achieved, penetrates beyond established aesthetics and ventures to suggest new approaches. Experimental design thus fulfils an important function for the entire discipline – by ensuring continuous input.
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08. January 2010
Categories: Awards, young designers, [d3] design talents
Tags: Cologne, design, experimental design, German Design Council, imm cologne 2010, Johanna Grawunder, Natalie Köhler, new design concepts, new ideas, prototypes, Rüdiger Sprave, Stefan Diez, Trends, young designers, [d3] contest, [d3] design talents

Johanna Grawunder, member of the imm cologne trendboard, photo: Koelnmesse; Lutz Sternstein
Johanna Grawunder isn’t easy to pin down. She builds houses, designs interiors and creates classic industrial products for clients like Boffi, Flos, B&B or WMF. But above all, she creates exclusive furniture and lighting for galleries in Europe and the USA, often integrating LEDs and seemingly dematerialising the forms.
For her, light is an important medium for designing the interior as part of the whole. Nor does lighting always have to be a stand-alone item, believes Johanna Grawunder. Integrated into furniture, it’s simply there – and takes on a whole new quality.
The architect from California began her career in Ettore Sottsass’ Milan studio in 1985 and was involved with some of his most prestigious architecture and interior design projects.
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05. November 2009
Categories: top designers
Tags: architect, B&B Italia, Bertjan Pot, Boffi, Cecilie Manz, Cologne Cathedral, design, Ettore Sottsass, Flos, furniture design, Giulio Ridolfo, imm cologne 2010, interior design, interior innovation award, Interior Trends 2009, international top design, Johanna Grawunder, jury member, lighting, limited edition design, Marcus Fairs, Milan, plexiglas, Rheinterrassen, San Francisco, Sottsass Associati, Trendboard, Trendbook, Trends, WMF, [d3] contest
For the fourth time, young and creative designers present fresh ideas and new concepts at the imm cologne within the framework of the [d3] design talents.
Hall 3.1 is the platform for young and independent designers, whose inspiring and visionary concepts for tomorrow’s design will surely fascinate the audience in 2009 again.
Made up of the three sections [d3] contest, [d3] professionals und [d3] schools, the event convincingly demonstrates that surprises are still possible and that there is no lack of fresh and new ideas. read more…
24. November 2008
Categories: [d3] design talents
Tags: hall 3.1, talents, visionary concepts, young designers, [d3] contest, [d3] design talents, [d3] professionals, [d3] schools