Photo: Deutsches Design Museum / Marshl Ceron

The Origin of Design

The “Streetwise” exhibition at the German Design Museum currently offers insights into Konstantin Grcic's creative process. On display are, in part, prototypes, mock-ups, and discarded ideas from over 30 years of design practice – supplemented by recent works from his label 25kg, founded in 2025.

7/6/2026

Konstantin Grcic is one of the most influential designers of our time. His ideas for renowned companies such as Plank, Magis, and Laufen combine functionality, technical precision, and a clear form language. Through his furniture, lighting, and everyday objects, he has had a lasting impact on international industrial design. The exhibition “Streetwise” at the German Design Museum explores the processes behind his work. It brings together a selection of lesser-known projects spanning more than three decades of design practice and offers insights into the development of ideas, concepts, and designs. On display are prototypes, mock-ups, and discarded ideas – objects that normally remain hidden and trace the journey from the initial thought to the finished product.

The title “Streetwise” describes a practical, experience-based way of understanding the world: intuition and trial and error form the foundation of this approach. In keeping with this, the exhibition focuses on the raw, direct, and unfinished, presenting design as an open-ended process in which insights often emerge only as the work progresses.

This philosophy is also carried forward by 25kg, the independent label founded by Konstantin Grcic in 2025. The platform serves to showcase and sell radical design concepts that would otherwise often remain unseen. The focus is on raw, unfiltered ideas and objects that deliberately defy clear categorization. Each published object is intended as a starting point for new discussions and aims to move the design discourse from theory into practice and into the real world. “I feel a strong urge to bring ideas to life that drive the discussion forward – ideas that might even spark controversy. I want to introduce these things into the debate. I believe there is a place for them,” says Konstantin Grcic.

“Streetwise” – featuring Konstantin Grcic + 25kg
Through September 26, 2026

Deutsches Design Museum
Uhlandstraße 185
10623 Berlin-Charlottenburg

Hours:
Friday from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m.
Saturday from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.