Press Release
Skyline Stories Modern Stand by Smart Design Expo Marzena Michalska Is Granted the Golden A' Design Award in Trade Show Architecture, Interiors, and Exhibit Design
Smart Design Expo Marzena Michalska honored for trade show architecture, interiors, and exhibit design by the international grand jury of the 2024 - 2025 A' Design Award & Competition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 18, 2025 /DesignNewswire/ A' Design Award & Competition has announced that Skyline Stories Modern Stand by Smart Design Expo Marzena Michalska, designed for Smart Design Expo, has been granted the Golden A' Design Award in the Trade Show Architecture, Interiors, and Exhibit Design category. The award was conferred within the 2024 - 2025 A' Design Award & Competition and was reached through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who evaluated anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.
About the Golden A' Design Award
The Gold A' Design Award is granted to designs that demonstrate a high level of innovation and a significant impact on their intended audience. Recognized as a major achievement by the A' Design Awards, these designs are characterized by their visionary approach and the exceptional skill of their creators. Winners of the Gold A' Design Award are noted for their ability to push the envelope in art, science, design, and technology, delivering solutions that not only meet but exceed expectations. These designs serve as benchmarks for excellence, encouraging further innovation and inspiring future generations of designers.
Regarding Skyline Stories Modern Stand
Skyline Stories is an exhibition stand created for a trade fair. The stand has two levels. Custom steel columns support an elevated floor at 4.2 metres, and a 10.5 metre beam allows an open display span. LED towers 6.5 metres high act as multimedia displays and form an urban skyline effect. A cantilevered balcony of 2.5 by 5 metres carries vertical gardens above the visitors. Materials include dark laminated panels with stone and black stained wood decors, with gold and copper details. Visitors move between levels and view the products from different angles.
About Smart Design Expo Marzena Michalska
Their dream was to establish a company that would be able to create both smart and beautiful but at the same time useful things. A company that would inspire others. They have been successfully working in the trade fair industry for over 13 years and they're are really proud of their achievements.
Award Record
Smart Design Expo Marzena Michalska is a winner of 6 A' Design Awards, including this recognition. The awards span the editions from 2018 - 2019 to 2024 - 2025 of the A' Design Award & Competition.
About the A' Trade Show Architecture, Interiors, and Exhibit Design Award
The A' Trade Show Design Award is an international competition recognizing innovative trade show booth projects and the best designers creating them. The competition is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to trade show designers, exhibition designers, event planners and interior designers from all countries. Entries typically include trade show interiors, exhibits, booths, pavilions, showrooms and kiosks. Awarded exhibit designs are published at https://designers.org/design-category/trade-show
About A' Design Award & Competition
A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade organized annually since 2008. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The A' Design Award has a philanthropic mission to advance society through good design by recognizing and promoting superior products, projects and services that benefit society, and by creating a global awareness and appreciation for good design practices and principles. Entries are peer reviewed and anonymously evaluated by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members against predetermined criteria such as functionality, ergonomics, engineering, presentation, innovation, usability, sustainability and technology, with score normalization applied to remove biases. Awards are conferred at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron levels. The A' Design Prize granted to eligible laureates includes the award trophy, the certificate of design excellence, the hardcover yearbook, a lifetime license to use the A' Design Award winner logo, exhibition of awarded works, an invitation to the gala night and award ceremony in Italy, inclusion in the World Design Rankings and Designer Rankings, and public relations and publicity services. Registration, the upload of a work and the preliminary score are free of charge, and Professional and Digital Edition laureates are not contractually obliged to pay further fees to claim the A' Design Prize. Further information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://designers.org/168840
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/168840
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!168840
- Laureate Profile: https://designers.org/d/242602
- Further Information from the Laureate: https://bit.ly/AluprofINS
Media Contact
Giulia Ferrari, Press Office
Designers.Org
Via Leone Leoni 32, 22100 Como, Italy
press@designers.org
+39 031 4491953
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Fact Sheet
The Work
- Project
- Skyline Stories Modern Stand
- Function
- Modern Stand
- Category
- Trade Show Architecture, Interiors, and Exhibit Design
- Discipline
- Spatial Design
- Industry
- Architecture and Branding & Advertising
- Colors
- Black, Dark Slate Gray, Dim Gray and Gray
- Images
- 5
- Client
- Smart Design Expo
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Smart Design Expo Marzena Michalska
- Country
- Poland
- Recognition
- Golden A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2024 - 2025
- Design ID
- #168840
Credits
- Team
- Marzena Michalska and Agnieszka Skora
- Image Credits
- (Photographer) Patryk Lewinski, 2025 Optional; (Photographer) Patryk Lewinski, 2025 Optional Image: #4: (Photographer) Patryk Lewinski, 2025
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- This exhibition stand redefines traditional fair space through its exceptional vertical design and open architecture. The key feature is an elevated upper level creating double-height spaces that showcase products in their true architectural scale. The design integrates multimedia towers reaching 6.5m, creating an urban skyline effect while serving as dynamic content displays. A distinctive cantilevered balcony introduces suspended gardens, adding natural elements above visitors' heads.
- Inspiration
- The design draws inspiration from Manhattan's iconic architecture, particularly its distinctive skyline and the historic Flatiron Building, where Aluprof contributed to its renovation. The concept reimagines urban verticality through a series of LED-covered towers that mirror contemporary skyscrapers. The integration of multimedia elements and elevated gardens reflects modern urban development's balance between technology and nature, while demonstrating architectural capabilities at true scale. We drew inspiration from cascading architecture, creating a flowing, multi-level design.
- Research
- Research focused on merging exhibition design with urban architectural storytelling. Through analysis of vertical space utilization and visitor flow patterns at trade fairs, we developed a multi-level design concept inspired by Manhattan's skyline. The study of multimedia integration in architectural spaces led to innovative solutions for product presentation. The resulting design transformed technical displays into an urban narrative, maximizing vertical space while maintaining accessibility.
- Challenge
- The project faced significant engineering hurdles including a non-standard floor height of 4.2m (versus typical 3m) to accommodate tall product displays. The key challenge was maximizing limited space while maintaining stand openness. This was achieved through innovative structural solutions and the integration of a large cantilevered balcony (2.5m x 5m) for vertical gardens. Each challenge required balancing architectural vision with exhibition safety regulations and space constraints.
- Realization and Technology
- The stand integrates advanced engineering solutions with custom steel columns supporting a 4.2m elevated floor. A specialized 10.5m beam enables open-span display, while 6.5m LED towers are stabilized through concealed floor bases. The 2.5m x 5m cantilevered balcony supports vertical gardens. Construction integrates seamlessly with multimedia elements within the architectural framework.
- Operation and Interaction
- The space creates a natural visitor journey across multiple levels. Ground floor showcases large-scale products at true height, while multimedia towers display dynamic content. An elevated walkway offers new perspectives of exhibits below, and a cantilevered garden balcony provides an unexpected vertical element. This multi-level flow enables visitors to experience products from different angles, revealing new aspects at every turn.
- Project Duration and Location
- The project was created in the first half of October 2024 in Poznan. Construction was completed between December 2024 and January 2025 in Munich. The project was exhibited at BAU Munich in 2025.
- Specifications
- Materials used included a set of dark, elegant laminated panels featuring stone and black-stained wood decors. These were complemented by details in gold and copper tones. The client's products were showcased in a specially selected gold-copper finish.
- Keywords
- booth, modern trade show booths, trade show booth design, creative trade show booths, custom trade show booths, Smart Design Expo stand, Smart Design Expo booth
