When the Future Meets 373 Years of Craftsmanship
When ART OF first met Anouk Wipprecht for an extensive interview in 2021, accompanied by our video portrait on YouTube, she was living in the United States and already operating far beyond the traditional boundaries of fashion. “Aesthetics alone were not enough for me,” she told us. What fascinated her was the idea of creating objects that communicate with their wearer and their surroundings.
Asked to define herself, Wipprecht described a mixture of artist, designer, engineer, technologist, architect and scientist. Five years later, that description seems more accurate than ever.
After 12 years in the US, the Dutch FashionTech pioneer returned to the Netherlands in 2025 and made Delft her new base, close to TU Delft and at the heart of the city’s innovation ecosystem. In 2026 she became official ambassador for “The Robots Are Coming – Delft Innovation Festival”, connecting robotics, art and technology throughout the city.
Her latest project brings this futuristic world into an unexpected dialogue with Dutch heritage.
For the final Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort in 2026, Royal Delft invited Wipprecht and fellow Dutch creative Don Diablo to create its final trophy collection. Wipprecht designed the #1 Winner’s Trophy and Constructors’ #1 Trophy, while Diablo contributed the designs for #2 and #3.
Wipprecht’s brief was to “go out with a bang.” Her polygonal design expresses energy and movement, while integrated light technology brings the ceramic object quite literally to life. A tiny microcontroller activates an ignition-like sequence before the trophy appears to “breathe” through light – technology that Wipprecht personally soldered, programmed and integrated.
Royal Delft, meanwhile, translated these angular forms into ceramic and hand-painted them in its Delft atelier. The process itself became an experiment: could the sharply polygonal object be released from a traditional mould and survive firing while retaining its geometry?
The result is more than a sporting trophy. 373 years of Delft craftsmanship meet code, electronics, F1 Trophy and Robotic Couture.
The story does not end with the trophy. For Zandvoort, Wipprecht also created her Formula 1 Zandvoort Circuit Dress – a wearable interpretation of the race itself. Inspired by the shape of the circuit, the garment incorporates 288 individually addressable LEDs. A XIAO ESP32S3 microcontroller processes the live Formula 1 telemetry and translates the cars’ positions into moving light across her body. “It’s almost like wearing the race,” she explains. Hand-painted Royal Delft elements link the dress visually back to the trophy – transforming telemetry, ceramic tradition and FashionTech into one interconnected project.
Five years after our first conversation, Wipprecht is still asking essentially the same question – only on a different canvas: What happens when seemingly opposite worlds are allowed to inspire each other?
IMAGE BY Marianne Q
SHORT Q&A WITH ANOUK
Anouk Wipprecht also answered ART OF some questions regarding, the vision, development and realisation of the trophy project:
How is the final 2026 trophy collection divided between you and Don Diablo?
I designed the #1 Winner’s Trophy and the Constructors’ #1 Trophy, both incorporating integrated light technology. Don Diablo contributed the designs for the #2 and #3 trophies.
What was the central idea behind your design?
The brief was essentially to “go out with a bang” – it had to feel energetic and celebrate the final Formula 1 race at Zandvoort. I worked with polygonal forms to create that sense of energy and movement. The light animation adds another emotional layer: it flickers almost like an ignition sequence, lights up, and then “breathes” twice before fading again. It reflects both the energy of Formula 1 and the emotional significance of this final race.
You describe the trophy as both designed and engineered. What does that mean?
I did much more than design its exterior. I personally soldered and coded the electronic elements. Inside are flexible phosphor-based light elements, an inverter, a microcontroller, a rechargeable battery and a switch. The animation itself is controlled by 140 lines of code. So the technology is physically integrated into the ceramic trophy.
How did the collaboration with Royal Delft work?
Royal Delft produced the ceramic body and hand-painted the trophy, while I developed the polygon-based design and engineered the electronics. One of the challenges was whether these sharp, polygonal forms could actually be released successfully from the ceramic mould and survive the firing process without losing their geometry. We really pushed the boundaries of what could be achieved with the traditional manufacturing process.
At the same time, Royal Delft’s master painters incorporated traditional decorative elements alongside more contemporary references, including chequered patterns that connect the object back to Formula 1.
Did your return to Delft play a role in the project?
Absolutely. After returning to the Netherlands, I reconnected with Joffrey Walonker at Royal Delft, whom I had known for several years. At the opening of Delft’s Robot Year on 11 February, he approached me about the trophy project. We started in February, had the final design around May, and now it has become reality. In that sense, the project is very much connected to my new life in Delft.
More Infos:
https://www.anoukwipprecht.nl
https://www.dondiablo.com/
https://royaldelft.com/en/the-final-trophies/
Videography by Jos van de Leur @josvdleur
Phototography by Brada Media @bradamedia