We here have had an amazing year at Yanko. I guess we say that about every year, but this year definitely was one to remember. We did a complete overhaul and came to you with Yanko 2.0. Responsive layout, bigger images, and kick-ass content. Here are 10 of the hottest set of wheels you saw on Yanko 2.0 this year!
01. The BMW i Motorrad Beta|R bike
09. The Mercedes Benz WIND Hovercraft
And leaving the craziest for the last,
10. The AirDiv Flying Car (I seriously don’t know what to call it!)
Summer’s just up and I’m sure your creative juices are flowing well. It’s time to take up yet another challenge aka the A’ Design Awards & Competition. This year’s call for entries is gives inspiration enough for you to know that you too can do it and be a winner! Some of the biggest rewards are the innumerable benefits and privileges that come your way, for example, free participation and exhibition space for winners, free sales listing at Salone Del Designer, free utilization of Design Mediator services and inclusion in BuySellDesign Network.
From about a hundred categories that you can apply to, Industrial Design, Automotive Design, Packaging, Product Design, Furniture Design and Lighting Design are what I can recommend. But hey, go through the entire list here before shortlisting your intent.
Once a winner, always a winner; this holds true for the A’ Design Awards & Competition. They take up the task of extensive PR, publicity and networking on behalf of the winners plus tools like exhibitions, yearbook, decorated certificates, world design rankings and elaborate gala night for networking, are also a part of the deal.
The entries are judged on a number of elements and an international jury panel of scholars, professionals and media members are appointed for the same. What I love about the judging process is that it’s very transparent and the feedback given to the participants is very valuable and authentic.
The deadline for regular submission is September 30, 2015 and the results will be announced on April 15, 2016 – right here on Yanko Design. Register here NOW!
Deadline: Regular Submission September 30, 2015
You can’t ignore the 2015 DiD Award (Dongguan Cup)! Why? It’s simple … you get to show off your talents, get acknowledged by peers, judged by some pretty heavy-duty stalwarts from the industry and at the end of it, take home a booty of cash prize! Call me vain, but that’s the beauty of it all. No Sugar coating the facts! Especially if the stakes are as high as $15,000 – approx 100,000 RMB for the top-slot in the Concept Category and $7,500 approx 50,000 RMB for Product Design Category at the 2015 DiD Award (Dongguan Cup) International Industrial Design Competition.
This decade old competition is an effort by the Dongguan Municipal people’s Government and China Industrial Design Association. For this year’s competition, the theme is “Manufacturing beauty comes from design”.
The competition is open for all, and the organizers will fly in the winners to a special event held at Dongguan. I see the perks already! Name, fame, talent hunt, prize money and travel enriching experience to China.
Get moving people, the registrations and submission period ends on the 20th of September 2015. For more details on categories, timelines and prizes, hit this link.
Deadline: September 20, 2015
The short of it is that The Good Design Award registrations are open and the deadline for entries is June 3, 2015 – So hurry and Apply Now! In case you need convincing … read the long of it … my trip to Japan and first hand experience of the Awards, the Jury and the Exhibition at Tokyo Midtown. The journey of the awards kicked off as a benchmark for the industrialized Japan, however, over the last decade or so, the focus has shifted to include consumer goods and everyday items. This opens doors for young companies and designers from the world over to participate.
The Good Design Award is hosted by the Japan Institute for Design Promotion and roughly 1200 designs are recognized every year. “BEST 100” items and 9 Grand Award were presented last year and the winner – Denso Wave’s robot, “VS050 SII” was spectacularly displayed in an enclosed box, doing its swag and how!
YD was a part of a special tour that got a chance to take in the sights and sounds of the exhibition. Besides feasting my eyes on the amazingly designed products, I got a chance to ask a few questions to the Chairman of the Jury, Naoto Fukasawa along with Fumie Shibata and Gen Suzuki.
When asked what was more important … design or technology, Naoto Fukasawa said that earlier it was all about design, but now we have transitioned to a phase where technology is more important. “The change has happened naturally. The aim of design is to expose the technology.”
The way Good Design Award works is this, they have a theme each year and for 2014 it was ‘Kokochi’ or ‘Quality of Comfort’, and while screening the submissions, this aspect is most applied in the final leg and is critical for you to get into the “Top 100” bracket. Aligned with this mindset, Fukasawa said that successful Kokochi simply means, “The design builds a harmonious interaction between the users and technology.” The Good Design Best 100 Special Exhibition conveys this message effectively and is visited by both Japanese and International Design enthusiasts from across the globe.
For 2015, Good Design Award has introduced “Topical Issue” as a new system in order to enhance their role. If you are participating, then please get a better understanding of this here.
Topical Issue refers to “an area where design is considered to be especially required in a coming society”. In the screening, a special team (Topical Issue Directors) to deepen discussion on these issues is organized, and observes subject entries across screening units and discusses the “possibilities in the future society” and the “roles and meaning of design”.
Moving on, it was a visual treat to see how involved Japan is in the Awards, for example I walked into the Muji Store and they had a whole counter dedicated to their award-winning products from over the decades. Almost every retail store was showcasing the G-Mark products in a special nook and according to Gen Suzuki; about 90% of the Japanese people are aware of the Good Design Award and respect its value when it comes to making buying decisions.
The Great East Japan Earthquake has left a mark in the world of design, and while Gen remarked how some of his designer friends have actually gone back to agricultural roots, the other end of the spectrum saw us walk through a special curation of Japanese Furniture Selection that hoped to “convey values through designs that have a fundamental purpose through meaning beyond direction.” Many of the designs showcased traditional craftsmanship such as Japanese woodworking as well as new technologies.
Catch them young and watch them grow – this adage is true in Japan, where the Award exhibition engaged children aged between 7 and 12, in activities that married design and technology. I got a peek at a workshop where children were asked to draw a picture over an area of a map and then they had to walk the area on the map with GPS attached to them. The idea was to see how many of them would manage to walk as close to the initial picture drawn on the map. Pretty clever!
It was a treat to visit Jury Member Fumie Shibata’s Studio, where she showed me her creations and gifted me her signature Japanese knife. I asked her what changes in the judging process has she seen over the last decade as a jury member?
Shibata: “The selection process or screening process has not changed; the environment and the focus of choosing winners is different each year, so our perspective is to match the brief of the theme for the year and judge the entry based on that. I have been a jury for the last decade and we are no longer looking at the submitted entries as stand-alone objects. We factor in the entire context and impact of the object for its intended environment. Our entire outlook is based on the whole and not the singular.”
Shibata on trends: “As for the trends in design, earlier big manufacturing companies would submit their products and these dictated the tone of the entries. Over the last five years, smaller retailers and design companies are participating and their projects have added a new dimension to the trends in design, which is more refreshing and radical. Each year there is a theme for the competition and that dictates the entry selection only at the last stage of judging. The pre-screening takes into account the overall quality and then may lead to a G-Mark Award, but for it to make the cut for special categories or the Top 100, and then the design should conform to the theme of the year.”
Shibata on advice to young designer: “Designers need to network both vertical and horizontal – meet not only mentors but also their contemporaries. When designers are creating, they should focus on staying true to their origins and at the same time blend in an international approach towards their design. This holds true to both Japanese and International Designers.”
Wrapping up my visit, I spoke with Gen Suzuki and asked him elaborate more on modern Japanese Design, “The main characteristic of Japanese Design is craftsmanship, and blending that with modern mindset is what the modern Japanese product design is. The downside of craftsmanship is that the focus is too much on the process and the product that the bigger picture is sometimes lost.” Well Said!
To sum it up, seeing is believing … and the 2014 Exhibition was Top Notch! I have come back with a profound understanding of why people praise Japanese Design so much. It’s all about the character and the mindset; using basic skills like craftsmanship and marring it with the modern implements. I can lay a bet that 2015 will be a step better, because you’re inspired by the exhibition and will be participating and winning … and I will see you in Japan in November!
Deadline: June 3, 2015
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(The “Good” in Good Design Award was originally posted on Yanko Design)
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“What is in it for me?” A logical question that most designers and design companies ask me when I talk about participating in design competitions. The reason why it’s a big deal to be noticed asap is the kind of lightening speed with which information travels these days. Keeping with the times is A’ Design Awards and in their 2015 edition they elaborate the extensive benefits of participating – fame, prestige, recognition, credibility, publicity and international awareness, being the keywords here.
The primary aim of the A’ Design Award & Competition is to create a global awareness and understanding for good design practices and principles by highlighting best designs in all countries and in all industrial fields. The ultimate aim of the A’ Design Awards is to push designers and brands worldwide to create superior products and projects that benefit the society. Every year, projects that focus on innovation, technology, design and creativity are awarded and pushed into the spotlight.
A’ Design Award & Competition is open to submissions from entries in 110 categories. Submissions can be made to Furniture Design, Interiors, Electronic Devices, Architecture, Packaging, Graphic Design, Ready-Made, Jewelry Design, Interfaces, Web Sites, Transportation, Yacht Design and others. View a list of all design award categories and requirements.
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Shop CKIE - We are more than just concepts. See what's hot at the CKIE store by Yanko Design!
(A’ Design Awards 2015 – International Call for Entries was originally posted on Yanko Design)
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The next version of the Apple iMac is a versatile screen that transforms from the size of an iMac to the MacBook to the iPad. Essentially, a device that moves from different forms to look and feel as sexy and innovative as an Apple product should be whilst being functional. Take a look at the detailed images that elucidate this concept … supersexy!
Designer: Cristian Tomas Moyano
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(Apple lightMac iMac was originally posted on Yanko Design)
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For those who followed my wrap up of the 2014 Xiamen International Design Business Week will connect with the kinda exposure that Red Dot Award: Product Design winners get. So, besides winning a prestigious award, the designers also are privy to massive promos via media, exhibitions and live events. Call it the whole nine yards. The icing of course, is the validation got from the esteemed jury, who are contemporary peers and are always looking for the next big bang!
In February, the international jury of independent design experts will evaluate every product – without online pre-judging. The team comprises of experienced Red Dot jurors such as Hideshi Hamaguchi, inventor of the USB flash drive, Tangerine founder Martin Darbyshire, IT design consultant Gordon Bruce and also newly acquired experts like Wen-long Chen, CEO of the Taiwan Design Center.
Regular: until 27 January 2015
Latecomers: 28 January – 11 February 2015
Red Dot Gala: 29 June 2015
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Yanko Design
Timeless Designs - Explore wonderful concepts from around the world!
Shop CKIE - We are more than just concepts. See what's hot at the CKIE store by Yanko Design!
(Red Dot Award: Product Design 2015 – Participate Now! was originally posted on Yanko Design)
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