“Anticipation” Grows for Lexus Design Awards Finalists
- 12 finalists selected from more than 1,200 awards entries on the theme of ”anticipation”
- Four finalists, including UK-based group STUDIO AYASKAN, AMAM (Japan), Myungsik Jang (South Korea) and Angelene Laura Fenuta (Canada), will go forward to produce prototypes of their projects, with mentorship from leading international design professionals
- Lexus will feature all the finalists’ work and announce the grand prix winner at the Milan Design Week in April
An alternative packaging material, a children’s toy, a new fashion concept and a colour-changing clock have won their creators places among the 12 finalists in this year’s Lexus Design Award.
They were selected from 1,232 entries from 73 countries worldwide in the fourth staging of the award, which took the theme of “anticipation”. Judging was by a panel of world-renowned designers and creators, who were impressed by the participants’ passion and willingness to explore the unpredictable. The 12 finalists were selected for their potential contribution to design innovation.
Four of the finalists will go on to produce prototypes of their designs, with mentorship from internationally recognized professionals: –
- Trace, by the UK-based Turkish designers STUDIO AYASKAN, is a clock that marks the passing of time with a liquid that changes colour under ultra-violet rays.
- Agar Plasticity, by AMAM (Japan) explores how agar derived from marine algae can be used as an environmentally friendly alternative to plastic as a packaging material.
- DADA, by Myungsik Jane (South Korea), is a block toy designed to let children use their creative imagination.
- Shape Shifters, by Angelene Laura Fenuta (an Italian designer based in Canada), is a new approach to garment cutting that takes a modular approach to textiles to create a variety of different outfits.
Architects and interdisciplinary designers Neri & Hu, along with designer Max Lamb will return as mentors, while designer/architect Elena Manferdini and artist/architect Snarkitecture join the award as the mentors for the first time.
The four completed prototypes will be featured as part of the Lexus exhibition at this year’s Milan Design Week, along with panel presentations of the other eight finalists’ designs. The event will run from 11 to 17 April at T32 Torneria/Carrozzeria in Milan. A Grand Prix winner, chosen from among the four prototypes, will be announced at the awards ceremony on 11 April.
Further details of Lexus’s presentations at Milan Design Week will be announced during February.
LEXUS DESIGN AWARD 2016 ENTRIES SELECTED FOR PROTOTYPE DEVELOPMENT
| Title | AGAR PLASTICITY –The potential of agar for packaging and other uses. |
| Designer(nationality) | AMAM – Kosuke Araki (Japanese), Noriaki Maetani (Japanese), Akira Muraoka (Japanese) |
| Resident | Japan |
| Description | AGAR PLASTICITY is a project exploring how agar, a gelatinous material obtained from marine algae, can be used as an environmentally friendly packaging material, as an alternative to plastic. |
| Mentor | Max Lamb |
| Title | DADA |
| Designer (nationality) | Myungsik Jang (Korean) |
| Resident | South Korea |
| Description | DADA is a block toy which can be freely assembled using bands, holes, and pegs according to each child’s creativity and imagination. |
| Mentors | Neri & Hu |
| Title | Shape Shifters |
| Designer (nationality) | Angelene Laura Fenuta (Canadian/Italian) |
| Resident | Canada |
| Description | Shape Shifters is a special cut of garment, applying modular principles to textiles, which allows different outfits to be created. |
| Mentor | Elena Manferdini |
| Title | TRACE |
| Designer(nationality) | STUDIO AYASKAN – Begum Ayaskan (Turkish), Bike Ayaskan (Turkish) |
| Resident | United Kingdom |
| Description | Trace is a clock that uses a liquid with UV rays and discoloration properties allowing us to visualise the passing time. |
| Mentor | Snarkitecture |
LEXUS DESIGN AWARD 2016 PANEL EXHIBITS
| Title | aniknown |
| Designer (nationality) | Ayami Marugata (Japanese) |
| Resident | Japan |
| Description | aniknown is a collection of clothes for six types of animal, with materials selected according to each animal’s features, behaviour and habitat. |
| Title | Bio-Vide |
| Designer (nationality) | Takuma Yamazaki (Japanese) |
| Resident | Japan |
| Description | Bio-Vide is a product, such as a table, designed using fallen leaves. It is a visualisation of the concept that all things return to earth. |
| Title | Drop Box |
| Designer (nationality) | Ding Dong (Chinese), Jincai Ma (Chinese), Junxi Huang (Chinese), Peter Luo (Chinese) |
| Resident | China |
| Description | Drop Box utilizes aerodynamics to allow critical supplies to be airdropped safely in disaster areas without requiring a parachute. |
| Title | Hexagon |
| Designer (nationality) | Chulin Yang (Chinese) |
| Resident | Australia |
| Description | Hexagon is an umbrella fitted with magnets which connect with each other to promote human interaction. |
| Title | PLANTS-SKIN |
| Designer (nationality) | Hiroto Yoshizoe (Japanese) |
| Resident | Japan |
| Description | PLANTS-SKIN is a planter made of a coloured mortar and special ink that shows when plants need watering.. |
| Title | Project Play |
| Designer (nationality) | Oliver Staiano (British) |
| Resident | United Kingdom |
| Description | Project Play is a first-of-its-kind lamp powered by wireless technology, made possible by using a magnetic rubber. |
| Title | RESOLUTION OF SOUND LOCATION |
| Designer (nationality) | OwlsTakato Sasaki (Japanese), Yuki Shinohara (Japanese) |
| Resident | Japan |
| Description | RESOLUTION OF SOUND LOCATION is a headphone device composed of super directive microphones and speakers that can determine the sound source and adjust volume. |
| Title | Slow Door |
| Designer (nationality) | Deepak Jawahar (Indian), Irina Michaela Bogdan (Romanian) |
| Resident | China |
| Description | Slow Door is conceived as an assembly of cubic components forming a spatial mechanism that delays transition through a doorway. It allows us to appreciate the time and space created by the experience. |
Note to editors: –
Lexus Design Award website: www.lexusdesignaward.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexusdesignaward/
Twitter: @lexusdesignaward
