By Audi

World premiere, take two: Only one day after the world premiere of the new Audi A8 on November 30 to international media representatives, Audi will present its brand flagship at Design Miami 2009 to an audience of design experts from all over the world. Both the premiere as part of the exhibition “The Art of Progress” in the Audi Pavilion and the premiere for the general public with the stand at Design Miami illustrate how Audi, in line with the brand motto “Vorsprung durch Technik”, is going down a new, innovative path with the new Audi A8.

As Rupert Stadler, Chairman of the Board of Management of AUDI AG, says: “The Audi A8 is the flagship of our brand. It stands for everything we are capable of at Audi. Our aim was to get as close as possible to the perfect automobile.”

The claim “Vorsprung durch Technik” is given a new interpretation in the A8. Manufacture, craftsmanship and precision are at the forefront of the production process. With its design the A8 represents a new step on Audi’s route towards being an unmistakable signature brand. A particular feature of the Audi A8 are the LED headlights, which not only increase efficiency and safety, but also give the sedan a one-of-a-kind appearance. Furthermore, the lightweight expertise in the brand’s new top-of-the-range model was consistently advanced and raised to cutting-edge technological standards in order to counter the weight spiral.

“Light Light”: Installation by Tom Dixon
The exhibition “The Art of Progress” in the Audi Pavilion highlights the values of the new Audi A8 artistically. To this end AUDI AG is collaborating with the top British designer Tom Dixon, who created the installation “Light Light” exclusively for the world premiere. It comprises 120 aluminum polyhedral lights suspended by helium-filled balloons made of aluminum metalized foil, which reflects the light of the bulbs. The installation is intended to make the qualities of the new A8 visible and tangible: “We looked at a series of qualities in the new A8 that are difficult to visualize or explain in words, and tried to find ways to express them in the purest and simplest way,” Tom Dixon says, explaining the basic idea. He was inspired primarily by the lightness of the aluminum Audi Space Frame, the brightness of the LED headlights, the technical precision and the great craftsmanship of the A8. “The design and development areas of Audi are extraordinary exercises in the most complex and advanced manufacturing techniques I could never match the spirit of teamwork and tradition that exist in Audi design, but I share some of the passion for newness and innovation that exists at Ingolstadt.”

Dixon designed the lights in “Light Light” in aluminum. The filigree lamps are carefully constructed polygons, which are three-dimensional polyhedrons with a total of 60 faces. Tom Dixon considered this shape appropriate to portray the complexity of the new A8. He wanted to demonstrate how mathematics, geometry and engineering can produce beautiful, balanced design.

Tom Dixon associates the LED headlights of the A8 with “brightness and beauty”. In order to radiate this in the installation “Light Light”, each aluminum light is fitted with multiple LED bulbs. These tiny bulbs project complex shadows on the wall reminiscent of the shape of the Audi Space Frame. “I love designing lights, as this is a field that as a result of many technological advances is constantly moving forward. Light bulbs, LEDs, photoluminescence – all these give designers an opportunity to create objects and effects that did not exist before,” Tom Dixon says.

The entire installation conveys a light impression of something that defies gravity. It resembles a cloud of light hovering on the ceiling of the Audi Pavilion. Beneath the installation designers and technicians can be seen experimenting with new shapes. By way of furniture, there are tables and chairs from the new Tom Dixon Collection in Tom Dixon’s signature color Fluoro orange. “The partnering of strong, honest materials used innovatively for long lasting function highlights the synergy we have with Audi; we are united by a commitment to making extraordinary objects for everyday use,” explains Dixon.

Artworks from the Rubell Family Collection
In addition to Tom Dixon’s design art, images and sculptures will be showcased in the Audi Pavilion. These are otherwise part of the “Beg Borrow and Steal” exhibition belonging to the Rubell Family Collection, one of the world’s best-known collections of contemporary art. The exhibition will open on December 2 on the occasion of Design Miami and Art Basel Miami Beach. Artists were selected whose works focus on an unknown future and at the same time draw on the heritage offered by art history, as the founders Mera and Don Rubell say: “It is exciting for us to witness a new generation that builds on the ideas and innovations of the past, comes up with its own, and leaves its mark on history.” Here, the parallels to the Audi brand are striking: “We constantly revert to the specific shapes we have used in the past and advance them. In this way, we manage to make an aesthetic link to the past and thus to the century-old tradition of the Audi brand,” comments Rupert Stadler on the DNA of the Audi brand.

The exhibition title “Beg Borrow and Steal” derives from a remark attributed to Pablo Picasso: “Good artists borrow, great artists steal.” After all, recycled imagery has often fueled new artistic products.

As regards the title “Beg Borrow and Steal”, the Audi brand is borrowing selected artworks in order to give them a new interpretation and place them in a new context beyond the world of art. Mera and Don Rubell agree that the cooperation with AUDI AG fits their vision perfectly: “In pioneering new innovations in technology, Audi appreciates that advances in science and engineering cannot exist without corollary advances in art.”

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