The world's first exhibition hall dedicated exclusively to CMF design—Color, Material, and Finish — has officially opened in Shenzhen's Guangming District, offering a new platform that links cutting-edge materials, sustainable innovation, and global design exchange.
Recently put into operation, the CMF Design Award Exhibition Hall showcases creations that challenge conventional manufacturing logic: coffee grounds transformed into premium smartphone back covers, bamboo that has been dyed and restructured into elegant automotive interior panels, and recycled plastics and metals refined into high-quality consumer products. What once seemed improbable is now presented as tangible design outcomes.
Located in Longbang Hi-Tech Industrial Park in Matian Subdistrict, the exhibition hall is the first of its kind worldwide to focus solely on CMF. Beyond serving as a repository of advanced materials and processes, it explores a core question facing modern manufacturing: how can CMF, often regarded as a subtle design layer, inject unique character into products and drive the shift from “made in factories” to “created through design”?
The venue is organized into three main sections: a CMF exhibition area featuring new materials, technologies and processes; a gallery of award-winning works from the International CMF Design Award; and a CMF texture hall. Together, they provide designers with a full-chain reference—from material samples and processing techniques to finished products and color trends.
Sustainability runs through the exhibits as a defining theme. In the consumer electronics zone, a 2024 award-winning smartphone back cover made from bio-based leather derived from coffee grounds highlights the fusion of eco-friendly materials and refined aesthetics. In the automotive section, bamboo-based decorative panels replace traditional chemical materials, combining environmental benefits with an unmistakable Eastern visual language. Elsewhere, recycled metals, ceramics, regenerated plastics and water-based coatings demonstrate how green materials can achieve both tactile quality and visual sophistication.
The exhibition hall was founded by Huang Mingfu, head of Samy Design Research and initiator of the International CMF Design Award. Huang's journey began in 2016, when he moved to Shenzhen to start his own venture. After early setbacks and financial strain, he took a bold step by launching the first CMF Design Conference and Award, which gained strong backing from the design community and academia. Since its debut in 2017, the event has grown into a global industry benchmark. In 2023, a CMF museum was completed, and in 2025 it was upgraded into today's exhibition hall in Guangming.
Huang said Guangming's location, transportation links and industrial vision made it a natural choice. Looking ahead, the exhibition hall plans to deepen cooperation with local universities and research institutions, establish branch venues in eastern China, and expand overseas to build a global CMF design network.
As manufacturing competition intensifies, Huang believes CMF is key to enhancing product value and brand differentiation. By connecting designers, enterprises and material innovators, the exhibition hall aims to energize the Greater Bay Area's design ecosystem and position China as a leading force in global CMF design.