December 1, 2016

DS AUTOMOBILES AND THE 21st ANNUAL “DESIGNER CHRISTMAS TREES” EVENT

DS AUTOMOBILES AND THE 21st ANNUAL “DESIGNER CHRISTMAS TREES” EVENT

Following the Manifesto of Freedom revealed on brand social media a few days ago, DS Automobiles is unveiling the Freedom Christmas Tree specially created for the 21st “Designer Christmas Tree” event.

Designed and created by the DS styling team, and produced by the craftspeople from the DS Workshop using avant-garde technologies, the Freedom Christmas Tree is a unique work celebrating the design freedom made possible today by parametric design and 3D printing.

Organised by Marie-Christiane Marek and the Comité Montaigne, the “Designer Christmas Tree” event brings together artistic design and charity fundraising. The idea is for luxury brands to imagine, enhance and re-invent the Christmas Tree. The designs will be on show at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées on 19 and 20 November next, before being sold in a charity auction with the proceeds going to cancer research.

The Freedom Christmas Tree will be show for the first time on 16 and 17 November 2016 at DS World Paris, 33 rue François 1er.

For 21 years, the “Designer Christmas Trees” charity, founded and chaired by Marie-Christiane Marek, has been exhibiting creations from some of the biggest names in fashion, design, and architecture and selling them for charity. Working on the unifying theme of Christmas, designers present exclusive pieces every year to reinvent one of the most iconic symbols of Christmas: the tree.

On 19 and 20 November 2016 at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris, the Comité Montaigne will be hosting the “Designer Christmas Trees” event. With its DS WORLD PARIS flagship store at 33 Rue François1er, DS Automobiles is taking part in this event once again, alongside other luxury brands. It will be displaying a tree designed and created by the DS styling team, and produced by the craftspeople from the DS Workshop.

For Thierry Metroz, DS Design Director, “The Freedom Christmas Tree that we designed and created for this latest “Designer Christmas Tree” event perfectly embodies the style of DS. A style expressing an alchemy that combines advanced craftsmanship with the spirit of avant-garde and high tech performance, whereby we are inventing constantly and overturning established cues.”

THE FREEDOM CHRISTMAS TREE BORN OF AVANT-GARDE TECHNOLOGIES…

Drawing upon their expertise in parametric design and 3D technology, the team of DS designers brought their skills to this new project, which celebrates the Freedom to imagine, create and explore new territories.  Parametric design is an innovative, avant-garde process in the automotive sector, enabling designers to think outside the styling box. Already used to design the futuristic dashboard and sculptural grille of DS E-TENSE  ̶  a unique vehicle embodying the brand future  ̶  this method can be combined with new manufacturing processes to create shapes that were impossible to produce until now.

“The new design processes that we are using at DS allow us to free up all our creativity, to think outside the box, to imagine new shapes and push back the limits. Being able to rethink the way we design a shape gives new momentum to our inventive skills. We are entering a new era!” says Thierry Metroz.

The sculptural, flowing Freedom Christmas Tree is a three-dimensional structural framework generated using a single component, the DS badge. Produced using 3D printing techniques, the tree is made of polymer, a substance that guarantees its compliance with the original design.

… AND MADE BY THE CRAFTSPEOPLE AT THE DS WORKSHOP

The steel-coloured Freedom Christmas Tree has an Amétryne Green base, echoing the colour of DS E-TENSE. The dexterity and attention to detail of the DS Workshop were key to achieving this result. The tree was hand-finished and polished prior to receiving a metal coating. As part of a meticulously organised and rehearsed protocol, a painter then applied a coloured varnish for a gradation effect.

The Freedom Christmas Tree is a unique work specially created for the 21st “Designer Christmas Tree” event. It is 500 mm tall and 400 mm wide with a span of 200mm.

It will be displayed on Wednesday 16 and Thursday 17 November next at DS WORLD PARIS, then at the Théâtre des Champs Elysées on 19 and 20 November 2016.