BLUE RIBBON SAILING REGATTA 2022

It is characteristic of Herend that in addition to its traditions, it is constantly looking for the new, and with its newer and newer works it also addresses the generations of today. Strong roots, innovative shoots  - this is the product development concept of Herend today, in the spirit of which we can pass on the centuries-old values of the Manufactory to the world of the 21st century, thus making our works of art attractive to future generations. The result of the innovative thinking is that the Herend Porcelain Manufactory is developing style-creating products that are of domestic and international interest, with about 100 employees participating in the process of creating new works. Our principle is that others should follow us in product development instead of us following others.

The Herend Porcelain Manufactory has been a cooperating partner of the Blue Ribbon sailing regatta for many years, giving the main prizes of the competition without any support. The meeting points of Herend and the Blue Ribbon are given by values, as Herend is a community that creates, preserves and passes on values. Today, Herend is the largest porcelain manufactory in the world, a well-known and recognized brand on every continent of the world, a Hungaricum, and a leading company in the field of Hungarian image building.

The Herend Porcelain Manufactory has 16,000 different white forms and 4,000 different patterns for painting. If we multiply these numbers, we get a huge product range of 64 million (!) items. In addition to this huge number of products, a new Herend product is born every day within the walls of the Manufactory.

Based on the idea of ​​tradition and innovation, the Herend Porcelain Manufactory has renewed the Blue Ribbon main prize this year. The main prize is 50 cm high, 30 cm wide and weighs 3.5 kg. The body of the lidded trophy is divided into two main panels, one panel displaying tradition and the other innovation. The tradition is given by the Apponyi pattern, which is named after Albert Apponyi, who was the first to buy Herend porcelain with such a decor in 1932, so we named this pattern Apponyi in his honour. Today, the Apponyi pattern has nearly 20 different colour variations, being one of the most popular Herend decors. The blue version of the Apponyi pattern appears on the Blue Ribbon trophy, so it refers to Lake Balaton and the name of the Blue Ribbon regatta. The main pattern of Apponyi is accompanied by Herend motifs scattered in several places on the body, on the lid and on the pedestal of the vase, also in blue, enriching the appearance of the trophy. The edge of the lid is adorned with a blue Apponyi garland. On the other main panel of the Herend trophy, a new creative pattern appears, displaying Herend’s innovative thinking. The colour blue, adorned by gold painting, also dominates here. Gold is 24 carat matt gold, being the most expensive version of gold paints. The new creative depicts the silhouette of a sailing ship. Under the sailing boat, the water of Lake Balaton ripples, then changes into a strip, thus referring to the name of the regatta. A detail of the Apponyi pattern appears on the sail of the ship, so the motifs placed in the two main panels of the vase, as tradition and innovation, also engage in a dialogue with each other. The vase handles are adorned with matt gold painting.

Of course, both the painted decors and the vase form have been made with craft technology, praising the talent of human creative hands.

The winner of this year’s Blue Ribbon sailing regatta will once again lift Herend porcelain to the highest at the prize ceremony.