S. Korean brands sweep IDEA design awards

South Korean companies, including Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics, Hyundai Motor Company, and Naver, have swept the International Design Excellence Awards (IDEA), one of the world’s three major design awards.

IDEA winners are selected by the Industrial Designers Society of America (ISDA) in 21 areas – home, automotive and transportation, design strategy, branding, etc. – based on design innovation, user experience, social responsibility, and other criteria.

This year, South Korean companies won three Gold Awards, which are the highest level. LG Electronics’ plugless monitor StandbyMe, Hyundai Motor Company's IONIQ 5, and Naver’s artificial intelligence-based smart device Clova Lamp won the Gold Award in home, automotive and transportation, and children’s products category, respectively. In particular, StandbyMe was awarded by all three major award programs this year, including the iF Product Design Award and the Red Dot Design Award. LG Electronics was honored for ten products, including StandbyMe and LG WashTower, which combines a washer and a dryer in one unit.

Hyundai Motor Company's IONIQ 5 featuring unique Parametric Pixels with a geometric pattern has proved its global design competitiveness once again for winning the IDEA award. The auto manufacturers’ application for vehicles, Hyundai Blue Link, and infotainment system for Genesis

were also on the final list for digital interaction. Samsung Electronics received a total of 48 awards – seven Silver, three Bronze, and 38 finalists, including Bespoke Cube air purifier, Bespoke Slim wireless vacuum cleaner, and premium TV Neo QLED 8K as Silver Award winners.


Gun-Huk Lee gun@donga.com