#MovementThatInspires
#OppositesUnited

From Milan Design Week

Opposites United By Kia

Countless design-focused installations, exhibitions, and parties are all around Milan for one fabulous week in April. At Milan Design Week, global benchmark design ideas and innovations inspired by everyday life share the stages with auto manufacturers eager to display their designs that glimpse into the futuristic world of wheels. Kia, so confident of the future and connectivity of design, found that there was no need to bring a concept car or SUVs to design week. Rather then taking the literal approach, they choose to brilliantly wow visitors with a groundbreaking immersive design installation. Indeed some other manufacturers may have scoffed at such a decision yet we thought Kia’s bold statement was simply dazzling.

A Global Design Exhibition

Becoming One With Design

We traveled to Milan to see Kia’s unifying design philosophy, ‘Opposites United’. This event’s theme involved combining contrasting qualities and finding synergies between opposing concepts with immersive media art installations displayed across seven exhibition halls. Kia’s design vision for a new era of sustainable mobility included multi-dimensional video, sound, and sculpture experiences.

“We hope that this exhibition will convey the sincerity of Kia Design, which seeks to communicate our essential design values and commitments to our customers in an innovative manner,” said Karim Habib, Executive Vice President and Head of Kia Global Design Center.

Karim Habib, Executive VP & Head Of Kia Global Design.

No Cars Needed

A Designed Approach To Mobility

Kia explained that ‘Opposites United’ is based on five key design pillars, each of which will be illustrated in a dedicated space as part of the exhibition: Bold for Nature, Joy for Reason, Power to Progress, Technology for Life, and Tension for Serenity.

“Kia’s ‘Opposites United’ design philosophy represents far more than just thinking about the car’s interior material or external appearance. Their organic philosophy is a reflection of Kia’s determination to further the compatibility of two vital fields which have come to be at odds with one another: human well-being and environmental sustainability,” says Ho Sung Song, Kia President, and CEO. “By adopting the ‘Opposites United’ ethos across our current and future models, we hope not only to demonstrate Kia’s ability to innovate, and create products which go beyond fulfilling the needs of our customers to enrich their experiences as well but to do so with a vision that also leaves a legacy for future generations.”

In addition to the guiding principle of the new ‘Opposites United’ philosophy, Kia’s future design will also embrace the company’s new Sustainable Design Strategy. This three-step initiative outlines ways to improve the sustainability of the materials used in building Kia’s cars. Kia is proving good design does not warrant a high price just a committed attitude for a better future.