Wallpaper* teams up with HTC to toast the Design Awards at a special Paris dinner

The Wallpaper* Design Awards dinner
The Wallpaper* Design Awards dinner in association with HTC, held at Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac, Paris
(Image credit: press)

The annual Wallpaper* Design Awards issue is a celebration of the very best design from the previous year and hence it makes sense that celebrations for the issue itself shouldn't be confined to a single event. And so it was that following the success of our London party, we shifted to Paris for an altogether more intimate affair last week.

The occasion was a special dinner, hosted by Wallpaper's Editor-in-Chief Tony Chambers, together with two of our Judges' Awards winners, Raf Simons and Konstantin Grcic (Best New Men's Collection and Best Furniture Designer respectively) in association with HTC, the sponsors of the Wallpaper* Design Awards 2010. A fittingly glittering event for the 'city of light', the dinner was held in Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac, one of Paris' finest contemporary art galleries, bedecked for the night in visuals from the Design Awards issue.

It's often said that a party is only as good as its guests and in this case it was certainly a night to remember. The select crowd consisted of a great number of the award winners (wearing badges designed for the occasion, announcing the awards they had won) and the cream of the creative crop. Guests flew in from all corners of the globe (see the full who's who in the gallery above), not just to celebrate their own victories but those of their fellow creatives too.

Continuing the winners' theme, guests sat on 'Myto' chairs by Konstantin Grcic for Plank and ate with cutlery by Jean Nouvel for Georg Jensen (this was a substitute way of honouring the architect of our Best New Public Building - even for us the idea of shipping Nouvel's Koncerthuset from Copenhagen was a little too ambitious). Waiters wore Raf Simons' collaborative collection with Fred Perry in a nod to Simons' trio of awards (as well as Best New Men's Collection, Simons also picked up gongs for his own collection and for Jil Sander again in our Best In Shows award).

And as a lasting reminder of the occasion, guests were given Margriet Foolen’s Slowcooker for Royal VKB, winner of our Best Domestic Design, Accento serving utensils by Konstantin Grcic for Serafino Zani, an organic fragrance by Honoré des Prés, winner of our Best New Grooming product and an invitation for a tour of Nouvel's Koncerthuset together with tickets for two to see a show of their choice when next passing through Copenhagen.

The dinner itself was worthy of an award in its own right. Suitably salon in style for its Parisian location, guests toasted each other with Veuve Clicquot before sitting down to four-courses of the finest locally-sourced ingredients including hand-dived scallops from Erquy, slow-baked Serres chicken from Challans and Saint-Marcellin cheese and baby spinach leaves dressed with Paris roof-top honey. The dinner was rounded off with Sertãozinho Rainha Espresso Blend by Monmouth and a selection of fragrant teas by Lyn Harris of Miller Harris.

Given the intimate scale of the event, guests played musical chairs between courses and were we in any doubt as to whether a winning time was had by all, everyone carried the fun on into the early hours of the morning.

Wallpaper* teams up with HTC to toast the Design Awards at a special Paris dinner

The select crowd consisted of a great number of the award winners and the cream of the creative crop, who flew in from all corners of the globe

(Image credit: press)

Dinner Table

The gallery space was decorated for the occasion with visuals from the Design Awards issue.
Guests sat on ‘Myto’ chairs by Konstantin Grcic for Plank

(Image credit: press)

Wallpaper’s Special Projects Director, Nick Vinson

Wallpaper’s Special Projects Director, Nick Vinson,
with the dinner’s co-host and winner of three Design Awards, Raf Simons

(Image credit: press)

Designer Ronan Bouroullec with the dinner’s co-host and Best Furniture Designer Konstantin Grcic

Designer Ronan Bouroullec with the dinner’s co-host and
Best Furniture Designer Konstantin Grcic

(Image credit: press)

Wallpaper* teams up with HTC to toast the Design Awards at a special Paris dinner

Guests admired visuals from the Design Awards issue before sitting down to dinner

(Image credit: press)

The table

The table was dressed with an array of our favourite tableware including porcelain by Paola Navone for Reichenbach, flatware by Jean Nouvel for Georg Jensen, stemware by Alfredo Häberli for Iittala and salt and pepper grinders by Norway Says for Muuto.

(Image credit: press)

Winners of our Best in Shows

Winners of our Best in Shows, Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren of Viktor & Rolf,
take in the display

(Image credit: press)

Wallpaper* Editor-in-Chief Tony Chambers

Wallpaper* Editor-in-Chief Tony Chambers began dinner with a speech welcoming the guests

(Image credit: press)

Nick Vinson with designer Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance and partner at PR

Nick Vinson with designer Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance and partner at PR Consulting Nathalie Ours-Choussat

(Image credit: press)

Guests

Guests sat down to four-courses of the finest locally-sourced ingredients including hand-dived scallops from Erquy, slow-baked Serres chicken from Challans and Saint-Marcellin cheese and baby spinach leaves dressed with Paris roof-top honey.

(Image credit: press)

At the Design Awards at a special Paris dinner

From left to right: Rolf Snoeren and Viktor Horsting, Peter Copping and Frauke Gembalies, Wallpaper* Publishing Director Gord Ray and Johanna Grawunder

(Image credit: press)

winners of our Best Peep Show awards

From left to right: winners of our Best Peep Show awards, Francesco Russo, Creative Director of Sergio Rossi and Pierre Hardy, Creative Director, together with winner of Best in Shows, Bruno Frisoni, Artistic Director of Roger Vivier

(Image credit: press)

Wallpaper* teams up with HTC to toast the Design Awards at a special Paris dinner

From left to right: designer and gallerist Hervé Van der Straeten, designer Inga Sempé, Bruno Frisoni, together with Clémence and Didier Krzentowski of Galerie Kreo, winners of our Best Cork Tease

(Image credit: press)

Guests at award dinner party

From left to right: Wallpaper* Deputy Interiors Editor Amy Heffernan with designer Christophe Pillet, Masako Kumakura, Worldwide Communications Director at Boucheron with Gord Ray

(Image credit: press)

Tony Chambers with Viktor Horsting.

From left to right: Tony Chambers with Viktor Horsting. Above right: Michael Amzalag, Art Director of M/M (Paris) with Pierre Hardy. Below right: Christian David, Perfumier at Honoré des Prés Fragrances with Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance.

(Image credit: press)

Dinner party

From left to right: Alison Blackman, European PR of HTC, Horace Luke, Chief Innovation Officer of HTC, Drew Bamford, Director of User Experience of HTC, Claude Zellweger, Design Director of One&Co; with Gord Ray

(Image credit: press)

Some people at award dinner party

From left to right: Stefan Zopp, Architect at Atelier Jean Nouvel, winner of our Best New Public Building, Clémence Krzentowski and Niels Erik Lund, Director of the Koncerthuset, winner of our Best New Public Building. Above right: Claude Zellweger, Horace Luke and designer Margriet Foolen, winner of our Best Domestic Design with her Slowcooker for Royal VKB. Below right: Pierre Hardy, Hervé Van der Straeten, Bruno Frisoni and Couli Jobert, Directeur Création Maroquinerie Sellerie at Hermès, winner of our Best Use of Colour award.

(Image credit: press)

Rosa Bertoli was born in Udine, Italy, and now lives in London. Since 2014, she has been the Design Editor of Wallpaper*, where she oversees design content for the print and online editions, as well as special editorial projects. Through her role at Wallpaper*, she has written extensively about all areas of design. Rosa has been speaker and moderator for various design talks and conferences including London Craft Week, Maison & Objet, The Italian Cultural Institute (London), Clippings, Zaha Hadid Design, Kartell and Frieze Art Fair. Rosa has been on judging panels for the Chart Architecture Award, the Dutch Design Awards and the DesignGuild Marks. She has written for numerous English and Italian language publications, and worked as a content and communication consultant for fashion and design brands.