von Hagen GmbH celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2023 and has been a reliable partner for international projects in trade fair and shop fitting since the beginning. Three years ago, EuroShop 2020 meant the last trade fair appearance of the entire industry for a long time because it was the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Exactly three years later, the trade fair world is more alive than ever before and von Hagen DESIGN was happy to exhibit again in Düsseldorf at the world’s leading international trade fair for retail, expo & event.
The Story of Three Men
On almost 743 square feet, von Hagen DESIGN invited visitors to experience the story of three friends who came together with very different backgrounds to create the unique tradeshow experience. Ernst Friedrich Drewes, born in Detmold, Germany, is a contemporary artist who, due to a disability, adapted his three-dimensional art into a two-dimensional plane in order to continue executing it. Axel von Hagen, managing director of von Hagen DESIGN and childhood friend of Drewes, wanted to help him find his way back to three-dimensionality and designed the anniversary exhibition stand together with Chris Wendel, another long-time friend and respected designer from the USA. For this purpose, various works of art by Drewes from different eras were taken up and staged in a new way. Visitors to the fair were thus able to experience the art for themselves, be inspired and at the same time discover new combinations of materials. The main attraction was an LED wall that projected animated “OVAL “s behind a semi-transparent mirrored film and not infrequently earned questioning and astonished looks. The mirror wall extended to a total height of 18 feet and created a walk-in space in which the two-dimensional painting series “NUDEL” was reinterpreted. Both installations picked up on the corporate colors of von Hagen DESIGN and served Drewes as inspiration for new works. Another work of art was found true to style in the reception counter, which was intended to arouse the curiosity of visitors and remind Drewes of his manufacturing skills. The entire presentation already convinced international jurors at the trade fair and brought the first award to the company in Blomberg, Germany. The team is very happy about the award and the successful restart.
