red dot: grand prix: "Air Berlin Annual Report 2007" by Strichpunkt | Kirsten Dietz, Jochen Rädeker

What does a bicycle or scooter driver in Bangkok have in common with the devotion shown to the Virgin Mary in a Nuremberg church? And what does a cow set against an alpine panorama have in common with a Chinese person sleeping in a Shanghai tram, or a fridge freezer in Helsinki with parasols on the Maldives? The answer is that they all depict situations from everyday life in the airline destinations of Air Berlin, illustrating the motto of their 2007 annual report: Air Berlin goes global.

This message is visually conveyed by the image of a suitcase going on a world trip. The case is sealed with a typical airport luggage strap, while the rest of the cover dispenses with all labelling except for a sticker of the company. On the first page a sheet of stickers with the different destinations gives readers the possibility to complement the cover with their personal destinations. The design idea is consistently taken up on the inside, such as in the reported numbers printed on a background depicting suitcase interior lining, the table of contents in the form of a baggage conveyor belt or the categorisation of the contents via suitcase pictograms. And lastly a 24-page photo series with unusual perspectives and parallels to the different destinations, which at the end are bundled into a set of postcards ready to be sent off from the different travel destinations.


Kirsten Dietz and Jochen Rädeker on “Conciseness through originality”:
Whoever regards design as just an effective means of “prettifying” something should urgently change their profession. The word design itself contains the meaning of “making a mark”, and thus setting examples – ideally the right ones. This, however, is not possible without a profound understanding of the task, and it does not work well without a good idea, either. In the case of an annual report such as the one for Air Berlin it has therefore been important to us to bring out the uniqueness of the core message and then find a concise design solution, which adds a visually interpreting dimension to the topic. In this case the report becomes a suitcase that goes on a trip around the world. The fact that this can be fun is intended; and the fact that it also looks pretty in the end, is okay, too.

Kirsten Dietz and Jochen Rädeker studied graphic design at the Stuttgart State Academy of Art and Design. In 1995 they founded the agency Strichpunkt, which they have managed since. Kirsten Dietz und Jochen Rädeker have written several books including “Die Zukunft gehört den Mutigen” (The future belongs to the courageous), “Book of Independence”, “finest facts & figures”, and are members of the Type Directors Club New York, D&AD and the Art Directors Club Germany. With 40 staff and clients such as BASF, Beiersdorf, Daimler, LBBW and WMF, Strichpunkt is one of the most renowned companies in the field of corporate design, brand communication and financial market communication. Since 2001 the agency has held top positions in Germany’s creative rankings and since 2002 the American specialist press has listed Strichpunkt as one of the ten most influential European design companies. In 2007, the company was voted “Agency of the Year” by the Art Directors Club.