Yves Klein was the most influential, prominent, and controversial French artist to emerge in the 1950s. He is remembered above all for his use of a single color, the rich shade of ultramarine that he made his own: International Klein Blue. But the success of his sadly short-lived career lay in attacking many of the ideas that underpinned the abstract painting that had been dominant in France since the end of the Second World War. For some critics he is a descendent of Marcel Duchamp, a prankster who lampooned settled understandings of painting and opened art up to new media.

Outside of the field of product and transportation design, too few people know who Raymond Loewy was. The best-known industrial designer, founder of the industrial design profession, and member of the pantheon of our greatest designers, it is time for wider recognition of this amazing man. Coming to the United States from France in 1919 at the age of twenty-five with $40 in his pocket, Loewy brought with him a love of trains, cars, and good design, but he soon also developed a love of America. He was featured in Fortune and Life magazines and made the cover of Time. Forty years ago, he was engagingly interviewed on TV’s 60 Minutes. Called “the frog” and “a refrigerator designer” by leaders of the auto industry, he created some of the most visionary automobiles in American history. He trained and developed dozens of other top designers. Today we see his work every time we see Air Force One, the Shell Oil or Exxon logos, or the Greyhound dog on a bus. Over his sixty-year career, he reshaped the world as we know it. This is his story.

The A' Design Award & Competition is one of the world’s largest, most prestigious and influential design accolades and one of the highest achievements in design and I am delighted to be one of the winners of the 2021-22 edition. This has come as a pleasant surprise, considering that I am new to product design and watchmaking. I feel very privileged to obtain this International recognition at age 22 and I would like to thank the 227 members of the International Jury for acknowledging Möels 528 with the golden prize in the jewellery, eyewear and watch design category. I truly appreciate it, but I can’t take all of the credit so I would like to duly recognize my parents Marcus Menescal and Pollyana Greca who supported me from the very beginning, Mr. Beat Geiser and René Wolf from Wolf Suisse Switzerland, Carol Yau, May Chan and Sally Yau from Wolf Suisse Asia, Felix Rudin from Ronda Time Center, Manfred Pucher and Manuela Krusch from Hirsch straps, Stefan Brown and Fouad Tolaib from Renderologists and David Gonçalves who helped me making the promo film. It would be impossible for me without the help and support and I convey my heartiest appreciation to all of you. Your Möels 528 package will now be delivered with the A' Design Award winner logo printed on the top cover to highlight the embedded design quality and increase the product value. This accomplishment will be my lifetime motivation for all my future designs and I intend to live up to the level of success this award demands.

https://competition.adesignaward.com/design.php?ID=139840

Thank you for being part of my story.

Betina Menescal