Red Dot Design Museum, Essen

As we had a pleasant institute excursion to Zeche Zollverein in Essen, one of the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage, on May 30, I happened to discover the colocated Red Dot Design Museum. Various industrial products design, ranging from stationery, home appliance, to machinery is exhibited. The annualred dot design award is granted. The jury evaluates the competitors according to the following four principles: innovation degree, funktionality und environmental friendliness and compatibility.
In short, the red dot design principle is that design is fuction oriented, the same as the Bauhaus design theory Forms follow Function. So is the museum building: simple and unremarkable. It was built in 1930s as a boiler building for the new Shaft 12 to enhance cole mining in the Ruhr Area. The whole Shaft 12 buildings designed by Fritz Schupp and Martin Kremmer are of the Bauhaus style. After the last mining in 1986, the boiler building is no more needed, either. Sir Norman Foster renovate it into a museum, which maches the notorious red dot design. The most exhibits are displayed in the old industrial building, while visitors are led in the new flowing corridors started on the first floor. The corridors are actually just kind of fly-over in white slabs or in glass. Beside the corridors, there are also some exhibtion areas. Spirally, visitors can go to the forth floor which has also the smallest square. The spaces are smaller than a floor lower.
The internal spaces are communicative between the new and the old in a horizontal as well as a vertical way. Led by the fly-over, visitors have the best paths to visit all exhibits. There's no splendid spacious effects, while a dialogue between the old parts and the new one can be perceived quietly and sharply. Sir Norman Foster made it and told every visitors that museums can also be simple except for being exaggerated. It was a little warm inside, because of the closeness of the old building, maybe because of the boiler essential. With regard to the exhibits, many of them are listed in the catelogue and are available on the market.