Tag Archives: Genesis

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Genesis Gets Abstract: When Luxury Cars Meet Liu Wei and The Met

Genesis, the Korean luxury brand that’s been quietly out-designing half of Germany, has just announced its next big project — and it doesn’t have wheels. Instead, it’s heading to Fifth Avenue.

In 2026, Genesis will team up with Beijing-based artist Liu Wei for The Genesis Facade Commission at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. It’s a mouthful, yes, but it’s also a statement of intent: Genesis isn’t just selling cars anymore; it’s selling ideas about beauty, design, and the shape of modern life.

Liu Wei — an artist who treats concrete, steel, and chaos like a playground — will transform The Met’s classical facade into a kind of urban hallucination. His work, stretching from September 17, 2026 to June 8, 2027, promises to juggle perspective, scale, and the emotional fallout of modern civilization. Expect sculptures that bend history, twist geometry, and maybe make you question whether you’re looking at a building or a dream under construction.

“We’re delighted to support Liu Wei,” says DooEun Choi, Art Director at Hyundai Motor, parent company of Genesis. “We hope his practices set moments of reflection and challenge our perspectives.” Which sounds suspiciously like what Genesis designers have been doing to Mercedes and BMW lately.

The Met’s boss Max Hollein adds that Liu’s work will mix curiosity, innovation, and a bit of humor — qualities that, frankly, describe the GV80 Coupe Concept just as well. Both the artist and the carmaker are obsessed with rethinking familiar forms. Both love proportion, tension, and the play between tradition and modernity. And both refuse to be boring.

Curator Lesley Ma calls Liu’s sculptures “raw yet refined,” which might as well be the Genesis design philosophy. These are, after all, the people who built a luxury sedan that looks like it was carved from light and silk — then priced it to undercut Stuttgart.

For Liu, the commission is “a challenge and a blessing,” a chance to engage with “the tremendous legacy of human civilization.” That’s not far from what Genesis is doing in its own industry — taking on a century of automotive hierarchy and asking: what if luxury could be new again?

Launched in 2024, The Genesis Facade Commission is now an annual tradition — part cultural outreach, part brand statement. But the underlying message is clear: Genesis wants to be seen not just as a car company, but as a cultural force, a shaper of ideas and aesthetics.

And if Liu Wei’s Met installation is anything like the cars that share its name, it’ll be precise, provocative, and quietly spectacular — a reminder that the future of luxury might look less like horsepower and more like imagination cast in steel.

Source: Genesis

News

Hyundai Motor Group to Supply Official Genesis Fleet for 2025 APEC Summit in Gyeongju

When world leaders roll into Gyeongju, South Korea, at the end of October for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders’ Meeting, they’ll be arriving not in motorcades of anonymous black sedans, but in a fleet of Korean-built luxury. Hyundai Motor Group has signed a memorandum of understanding with the APEC Preparatory Office to supply a total of 200 vehicles for the event — the kind of assignment that says, “This is our home turf, and we’re bringing our best.”

Among the lineup are 113 Genesis G90 sedans and 74 Genesis G80s, joined by three Universe hydrogen-electric buses and two mobile office buses. The Genesis sedans will handle protocol duties and ferry delegates between venues, while the hydrogen buses will keep things on-brand for an event that’s all about sustainable development.

It’s a fitting match: APEC’s 2025 theme — “Building a Sustainable Tomorrow: Connect, Innovate, Prosper” — practically reads like a Genesis press release. Hyundai’s luxury arm has spent the last decade reinventing itself as a symbol of Korean sophistication, and now the G90, with its quiet electrified powertrains and first-class interior, is set to carry presidents and prime ministers as smoothly as it carries CEOs.

This year’s APEC marks the first time in two decades that Korea has hosted the summit — the last one was in Busan in 2005. “It is a great honor for Hyundai Motor Group to sponsor the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting, especially as it returns to Korea after 20 years,” said Ilbum Kim, Executive Vice President and head of the Group’s Global Policy Office. “We will do our utmost to contribute to the successful hosting of the meeting in Gyeongju.”

The automaker’s diplomatic résumé is growing fast. Hyundai and Genesis fleets have already served at global gatherings including the 2024 Korea-Africa Summit in Seoul, the 2023 G20 New Delhi Summit, the 2023 ASEAN Summit in Jakarta, and the 2022 G20 Summit in Bali. In each case, the goal has been the same: prove that Korean luxury belongs on the world stage — not just in showrooms, but at the center of global affairs.

While most eyes will be on the policy talks inside the conference halls, automotive enthusiasts can take comfort knowing that some of the sharpest sedans and most advanced hydrogen tech Korea has to offer will be gliding quietly outside. In other words, when the world’s leaders gather to discuss sustainability, Hyundai Motor Group will be making the point on four (or six) wheels.

Source: Hyundai

News

Genesis Plants Its Flag in California: A New Design Studio Aims to Shape the Brand’s Next Decade

Genesis is turning ten—and rather than throwing a quiet birthday party, it’s lighting a creative fuse in the heart of California. The Korean luxury brand has just opened Genesis Design California, an all-new, state-of-the-art studio in El Segundo that promises to become the brand’s West Coast nerve centre for design and innovation.

At 80,000 square feet, the facility looks every bit the part of a luxury marque’s creative hub: minimalist architecture, warm lighting, and spaces designed to be as serene as a Korean tea garden. But beyond its tranquil exterior lies a bold statement of intent. This isn’t just another satellite office—it’s a clear sign that Genesis wants to design cars specifically for North American tastes, with the same emotional and cultural depth that’s made its recent models such standout designs.

“Genesis Design California embeds our team directly in the U.S. market, ensuring we design vehicles that truly resonate with North American customers,” said José Muñoz, president and CEO of Genesis. “The investment in this facility and the jobs it is creating are emblematic of our long-term commitment to North America.”

That’s no small promise. In the space of just ten years, Genesis has gone from Hyundai’s upscale experiment to a legitimate luxury contender—winning over enthusiasts and critics alike with striking, design-led cars like the G90, GV70, and the all-electric GV60.

A Global Design Triangle

The El Segundo facility completes a global design trinity, joining Genesis’s existing studios in Seoul and Frankfurt. Together, the three operate almost like a relay team: when one studio wraps up for the day, another picks up the baton, creating a 24-hour cycle of creativity that never sleeps.

The Californian arm, home to 45 designers, will contribute far more than car sketches. The studio’s scope stretches from production and advanced concept vehicles to explorations in air mobility, robotics, and even CMF (Color, Material, Finish) trend research. It’s a holistic approach that treats design not just as visual styling, but as storytelling—reinforced through virtual imagery, digital film, and immersive experiences.

“Design Is Brand, Brand Is Design”

That mantra comes straight from Luc Donckerwolke, Genesis’s Chief Creative Officer and one of the most respected figures in automotive design today.

“At Genesis, design is brand and brand is design,” Donckerwolke said. “Genesis Design California is the embodiment of this. It embraces our distinctly Korean identity, creating a space that inspires creativity. I cannot wait to see that inspiration come to life in the team’s work.”

The Space Itself: Zen Meets Innovation

Walking into the studio is said to feel like crossing from the noise of Los Angeles into a world of calm precision. There’s a digital design lab, clay modeling and 3D printing workshop, and a library for reflection and research—complete with a tea platform inspired by Korean ritual. The open workspace is dotted with flexible, collaborative zones, while soft acoustic felt encloses private rooms designed for focus and serenity.

Outside, garden-inspired lounges and a rooftop patio channel both traditional Korean landscapes and the relaxed vibe of Southern California, making the environment as much about wellbeing as productivity.

Why It Matters

Genesis is at a pivotal point. With electric mobility, luxury experience, and digital ecosystems defining the next decade, design will be the battleground on which premium brands fight for identity and relevance. By anchoring itself in California—the global crossroads of car culture, technology, and design—Genesis isn’t just following the trend. It’s making a statement: that Korean luxury has a permanent seat at the global table, and it’s ready to influence how the next generation of vehicles look, feel, and connect.

If the past decade was about proving Genesis could build a world-class car, the next one—starting here, in El Segundo—will be about proving it can define what world-class design means.

Source: Genesis