Studio FREUDE – FRD Design GmbH

FREUDE is a Vienna-based design studio founded by Simon Pointner, Markus Wieser and Alexander Hofmann in 2023. A ten-strong team unites all the relevant areas of design in one place, creating authentic brand experiences through branding, interior design, digital interaction and experience design. True to the agency’s name (“Freude” is German for “happiness”), their main aim is to make people happy.

Interview with Studio FREUDE – FRD Design GmbH

Red Dot: Your campaign for the Viennese non-profit organisation VinziRast served the objective of making homelessness visible. How did it achieve that?
Studio FREUDE – FRD Design GmbH: When you have multiple crises going on simultaneously, an increasing number of people tend to find themselves living on the streets. The anniversary campaign “VinziRast hilft auf. Seit 20 Jahren.” (VinziRast has helped. For 20 years.) made these people visible. It was implemented in collaboration with the New York artist Fanny Allié, with the “Glowing Wanderers” illuminated artworks as its centrepiece. The campaign used below-the-line advertising in combination with an exhibition on the streets of Vienna. It would never have been possible to realise the campaign in this form without the pro bono support of our many partners and patrons. Thanks again to everyone for their kind generosity!

Digital storytelling elements were used in addition to the “Glowing Wanderers” light sculptures. What task did they perform?
The campaign microsite gives people the opportunity to make direct donations. It also features interviews with former homeless people and their stories, allowing a deeper dive into the topic. QR codes on the light sculptures make it possible to tap into the issue with a smartphone and experience the campaign on an additional level.

What considerations do you have to make in communication design when approaching sensitive issues such as homelessness?
We believed it was important to communicate the issue with dignity and not to showcase or instrumentalise people. The silhouettes of the figures don’t represent specific individuals; they symbolise the issue in a respectful and artistic way.

The project was a collaboration with the artist, Fanny Allié. How did you like working with her?
She was genuinely amazing – both as a compassionate individual and as an artist. Fanny Allié was completely engaged with and committed to the issue, and it’s thanks to her art that the campaign ended up being so special.

What kind of responses did the campaign get?
When you draw attention to such an issue in public space, you spark interesting conversations and dialogues, and it’s a great way to put both the issue and the association in the spotlight. Prestigious international awards, like the Red Dot Design Award, are a source of motivation and bring us additional, important PR. We and VinziRast absolutely welcome all forms of support and positive feedback.