High and Dry. Media-friendly Dutch Droog Design on the International Winners' Podium

In the last decade of the twentieth century, Droog Design was one of the most talked-about cutting-edge movements in the world of design. It rapidly succeeded in gaining international attention for its new design mentality, with its emphasis on clear concepts, its sober, ‘dry' approach and its ‘dry' sense of humour (all encompassed by the one short word ‘droog', ‘dry', which also evokes all the relevant Dutch historical stereotypes). However, the sounds of celebration on the occasion of Droog Design's recent tenth birthday weren't exactly deafening. Art magazines, design magazines, colleagues and the culturally-minded may all sing the praises of Dutch Design, but industry and ordinary consumers aren't impressed. Dutch top design consists mainly of media products; there's hardly any connection to industry and the market. Do these clever, ironic, thought-provoking social comments of Droog Design go beyond the level of frivolous entertainment?