Press Release
GT Experience Gaming Enclosure by Kenichi Mizuno Wins the Bronze A' Design Award in 3D Printed Forms and Products Design
Kenichi Mizuno honored for 3D printed forms and products design by the international grand jury of the 2025 - 2026 A' Design Award & Competition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 22, 2026 /DesignNewswire/ GT Experience Gaming Enclosure by Kenichi Mizuno has been granted the Bronze A' Design Award in the 3D Printed Forms and Products Design category, A' Design Award & Competition has announced. The award was conferred within the 2025 - 2026 A' Design Award & Competition and was determined 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.
The Bronze A' Design Award Explained
The Bronze A' Design Award is given to outstanding designs that showcase a high degree of creativity and practicality. It recognizes the dedication and skill of designers who produce work that stands out for its thoughtful development and innovative use of materials and technology. These designs are acknowledged for their professional execution and potential to influence industry standards positively. Winning this award highlights the designer's ability to blend form and function effectively, offering solutions that enhance people's lives and wellbeing.
About GT Experience Gaming Enclosure
GT Experience brings the thrill and tension of circuit driving into sim racing through an immersive spatial enclosure. A modular pair of large scale 3D printed side panels shapes peripheral vision to deepen focus while staying open for home play and esports venues. Its sculptural form transforms visible layer lines into premium surface language, turning a manufacturing limitation into design identity. Lightweight elastomer modules improve safety, quick assembly, transportability, and compact storage.
About Kenichi Mizuno
By evolving from a technical engineer who managed mechanical design and industrial production into a leading product designer, he developed a unique philosophy called Surprise and Logic. This approach integrates regional heritage with modern technologies, transforming personal creative passion into award-winning products that resonate globally. His portfolio has been widely featured in over 50 major media outlets, including Axis and Newsweek Japan, reflecting the deep social and technical impact of his work.
Award Record
With this recognition, Kenichi Mizuno is a winner of 2 A' Design Awards. The awards were granted in the 2025 - 2026 edition of the A' Design Award & Competition.
About the A' 3D Printed Forms and Products Design Award
The A' 3D Printing Design Award is an international 3D printing design competition recognizing good 3D printed works by designers and creators worldwide. It is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to 3D printing designers, industrial design studios, product designers and 3D printing brands from all countries. Typical entries include products designed and realized with latest technologies, 3D printed products, prosthetics, architectural models, jewelry and furniture. The awarded 3D printed designs are published at https://designers.org/design-category/3d-printing
About A' Design Award & Competition
Organized annually since 2008, A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The philanthropic mission of the A' Design Award is 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. Nominations are peer reviewed and evaluated anonymously 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. Eligible laureates receive the A' Design Prize, which 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, uploading a work and receiving a 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. More information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://designers.org/182779
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/182779
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!182779
- Laureate Profile: https://designers.org/d/378865
- Further Information from the Laureate: https://x.gd/C1myJ
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
- GT Experience Gaming Enclosure
- Function
- Gaming Enclosure
- Category
- 3D Printed Forms and Products Design
- Discipline
- Industrial Design
- Industry
- Manufacturing and Innovation
- Colors
- Black, Dark Slate Gray, Dim Gray, Gray and Gainsboro
- Images
- 5
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Kenichi Mizuno
- Country
- Japan
- Recognition
- Bronze A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2025 - 2026
- Design ID
- #182779
Credits
- Image Credits
- Photographer Chikara Kitabatake, GT Experience, 2022.; Creator Kenichi Mizuno, GT Experience, 2022.
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- GT Experience is a modular pair of large-scale 3D-printed side panels that transforms a simulator frame or sofa into an immersive gaming enclosure for home use, esports venues, and staged events. Its sculptural form visualizes the build-up of motorsport tension through rising elements reminiscent of a tachometer graph and neural transmission. Instead of hiding the layer marks usually associated with additive manufacturing, the design turns them into a premium surface language. Soft elastomer improves impact safety, while lightweight segmented construction enables transport, quick assembly, and compact storage.
- Inspiration
- GT Experience was inspired by the emotional state of circuit driving: rising tension, sharpened concentration, and the feeling that the driver's senses are directly connected to the machine. Rather than designing only a simulator frame, the project explored how this psychological intensity could be translated into space itself. The aim was to create an environment that makes sim racing feel more focused, dramatic, and physically engaging.
- Research
- This project is an applied design study on how spatial enclosure can support concentration in sim racing while validating large-format additive manufacturing at practical scale. The process included CAD development, mockups, full-scale printing, fit checks with simulator frames, transport tests, assembly trials, and safety review. The outcome demonstrated that large-format printed modules could function as both immersive spatial elements and feasible design components for real-world installation. The project may also have encouraged further experimentation by younger local creators who later encountered this fabrication environment.
- Challenge
- The main challenge was to create a structure that felt visually powerful while remaining feasible for compact interiors and event use. It needed to be divided into lightweight printable modules that could pass through doors, be transported efficiently, assembled quickly, and stored compactly. Another challenge was to achieve a strong visual identity without relying on excessive finishing, allowing the manufacturing process itself to remain visible as part of the final expression.
- Realization and Technology
- Produced in Japan using domestic large-format additive manufacturing and elastomer-based material, the project was conceived as both a design proposal and a real-scale validation of large-format 3D printing. The modules were designed for practical transport, assembly, disassembly, and storage while preserving the expressive value of printed layer marks with minimal finishing. Retired parts can be shredded and reused as feedstock in compatible recycling-oriented workflows, reducing waste and supporting broader additive manufacturing applications.
- Operation and Interaction
- The printed modules are assembled into two side structures and placed around a simulator frame or seating. The panels create a tunnel-like atmosphere that supports concentration without fully enclosing the user. In homes, the system enhances immersion while remaining compact and open. In tournaments or exhibitions, it functions as a lightweight stage element that can quickly transform an ordinary play area into a dramatic experiential zone.
- Project Duration and Location
- The project started in Summer 2021 in Aichi and Tokyo, and the concept model was completed and announced in April 2022 in Japan.
- Specifications
- Material: elastomer, matte black coating. Per side panel: 1800 x 1350 x 150 mm, weight 15 kg.
- Keywords
- 3D Printing, Sim Racing, Immersive Space, Gaming Enclosure, Motorsport, Peripheral Vision, Layer Texture, Elastomer, Large Format Additive, DfAM
