Discovering new, young talents

CHUNG

A six-month internship at architectural, space planning, interior designing giant Lor Calma & Partners or at the world-renowned Aidea Philippines Inc. plus a P50,000 cash prize await the two winners of this year’s edition of the Asia Young Designer Award (Ayda).

The winners, one in the Architecture category (open to third-year onward students) and another in the Interior Design category (also open to third-year onward students), will also get a chance to experience a once-in-a-lifetime learning experience in Bali, Indonesia, (sponsored by Nippon Paint) as well as represent the Philippines in the regional round where the winner in each category receives the much-coveted The Platinum Award plus $1,000 cash (around P47,000).

“This year’s competition is focused on the theme ‘Be Bold. Be Free. Be You.’ It seeks out designs that are unconventional, nonconformist, innovative and with a focus on individuality,” said Michael Chung, general manager of Nippon Paint (Coatings) Philippines who informed that this year’s edition places the competition on a higher echelon of gathering young talent across borders and spurring innovative thinking on how to make life healthier, more convenient and eco-efficient through design.

This competition, formerly known as the Nippon Paint Young Designer Award, encourages participants to create a design that has something unique to offer design professionals, commercial buyers and the community alike.

Brave new idea

“It has to be a brave new idea that no one has ever seen, which carries commercial value and yet pays careful attention to the well-being and green sustainability of its surrounding community. Our judges are looking for a well-thought-out design that is both phenomenal and useful, executed in top-notch quality to match,” said Chung.

According to Chung, from its debut with 87 entries solely from Malaysia, the competition as of last year, has grown to over 2,500 entries from 12 different countries, including the Philippines, Singapore, Bangladesh, Thailand, Pakistan, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Vietnam, China, Japan and Hong Kong.

This year, Ayda will be extended to three additional countries, namely Sri Lanka, India and Taiwan.

“As you may have noticed, this competition has since evolved to include participants from more countries in the region, and thus has been revitalized and rebranded to reflect its widening reach and its increasing significance to the design scene in Asia,” said Chung.

Submission of entries would be until Oct. 15. (For more information and to download an entry kit, visit www.youngdesigneraward.ph.)

Judges

For the Philippine leg of the tournament, the lineup of judges is composed of the industry’s luminaries namely (for the interior design category) interior designers Marichi Costelo, Jose Maria Hubilla, Wilfrid Nicholo Magcase, Belen Morey, Michael Pizarro, Mel Reyes and Vincent Louie Tan.

Meanwhile, the judges for the architecture category are architects Nina Bailon-Arce, Consuelo Buencamino, Jose Ramon Carunungan, Chona Elvas-Ponce, Maria Benita Regala, Abelardo M. Tolentino Jr. and interior designer Eduardo Calma.

Aside from the Gold winners, other awards to be given include Silver (P30,000 cash and plaque); eight finalists (P10,000 cash); Best Color Choice (P5,000 cash); Best Green Innovation (P5,000 cash); Best Professor/Adviser (P10,000 cash for the Gold awardee); Best College/University (P10,000 cash plus P10,000 paint voucher for the Gold Awardee); Best Supporting College/University (P5,000 cash prize plus P5,000 paint voucher for the school with the most number of submitted entries).