Extrapolation Factory wins Lexus Design Award 2018 Grand Prix with Testing Hypotheticals

A new concept that helps people understand and explore new ways of living and working has been named the Grand Prix winner of the Lexus Design Award 2018. The honour for Testing Hypotheticals was presented to the design research studio Extrapolation Factory at the opening reception for the Lexus Design Event at Milan Design Week last night (16 April).

Testing Hypotheticals is a collaboratively imagined test site that explores speculative relationships between society, technology and the environment.  It was successful from among a record 1,319 entries for this year’s award, received from designers in 68 countries worldwide.

Sir David Adjaye, award-winning architect and a member of the judging panel, said: “This year’s winner permeates the current thinking about the role of design in our evolving and technologically shifting societies. Products play less of a role, and design education/teaching and thinking are at the forefront. How citizens and designers interact with products, processes and future is increasingly critical to mediating this influence of design in our increasingly future-oriented and technologically evolving world.

“The chosen design shows methods and techniques for engaging the public and designers in role-playing possible futures and negotiating the influences of our technological world.”

Elliott P. Montgomery, founder of the Brooklyn-based Extrapolation Factory with Christopher Woebken, said: “It was truly fantastic, the experience of working with our mentors Formafantasma was incredible. We could not have done this without the support of Lexus.”

Lexus believes in the power of design to change the world. This is why it has established the award to help nurture and celebrate the work of emerging designers whose work shifts perspectives, communicates ideas and stimulates the imagination to show how it might shape a better future.

Established in 2013, the Lexus Design Award has supported the next generation of designers from around the world. The sixth year of the competition took the theme of “CO-“, the Latin prefix meaning “with” or “together”. Lexus believes that great design can secure the harmonious coexistence of nature and society; in that sense “CO-“ is an approach that allows the brand to explore its own potential and that of the environment, by creating new possibilities through collaboration, co-ordination and connection.

The award’s elite judging panel, whose new members this year included both Sir David and his fellow celebrated architect Shigero Ban, selected 12 finalists from among the wealth of submissions. From these, four were chosen for development to prototype stage with support from mentors drawn from a team of elite designers of international repute. Extrapolation Factory were mentored in this process by Formafantasma.

The other finalists had their entries displayed as a concept proposals. All have been put on public show as part of Limitless Co-existence, the Lexus Design Event at Milan Design Week, taking place from today until 22 April at the Cavallerizze in the Leonardo da Vinci National Science and Technology Museum.

Lexus Design Award 2018: The People’s Choice

Following strong public engagement with the public in past Lexus Design Award displays, Lexus has this year introduced the Lexus Design Award 2017 People’s Choice, creating another level of interaction. The winner will be determined by the number of votes cast on the www.lexusdesignaward.com website between today and 21 April. The winner will be announced on 22 April, the closing day of the Lexus Design Event.