The Museum of Arts and Design in New York, the Victor J. Papanek Foundation at the University of Applied Arts Vienna, and the Austrian Cultural Forum New York announced the finalists and winners of the Design for the Real World - inaugural competition supporting environmentally sustainable and socially responsible design.
The Design for the Real World Redux international design competition was created to honor Victor J. Papanek, the acclaimed Austrian-born, American-trained designer and educator whose 1971 book "Design for the Real World" was one of the first to promote ecologically and socially responsible design. The competition solicited entries from established, emerging, and student designers of projects that upheld Papanek's vision of environmental and/or social responsibility.
Submissions were solicited in two categories: "Designed Objects" and "Social and/or Ecological Infrastructures and Design Concepts." A total of 92 submissions were received from 20 countries, including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Canada, China, Costa Rica, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Indonesia, Israel, Netherlands, Norway, Slovenia, South Africa, Taiwan, United Kingdom, and the United States.
From these submissions the jury selected 17 projects - 4 winners of the Victor J. Papanek Social Design Award and 13 finalists - which will be exhibited in Vienna at the University of Applied Arts Vienna (November 10, 2011-January 31, 2012), and in New York at the Museum of Arts and Design, and the Austrian Cultural Forum New York (March 6-June 17, 2012). A fully-illustrated catalogue will be produced to accompany the exhibition.
Winners
OLPC XO-3 tablet computer: Yves Behar, Fuseproject
Green Map System: Wendy E. Brawer, Green Map System
Urbaneering Brooklyn 2110: Ecological City of the Future: Mitchell Joachim, Planetary One + Terreform One
Jani Sanitary Pad: Lars Vedeler with Marc Hoogendijk, Sophie Thornander, Karin Lidman, and Kristin Tobiassen
Finalists
See Better to Learn Better: Yves Behar, Fuseproject
TYTHEdesign-Mobile Soup Kitchen, MSK: Kristina E. Drury, TYTHEdesign
Emergency Ambulance: Margaret Durkan, Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design, Royal College of Art
Plant 3, Algae Community Power Station: EOOS Design
The Edible Spoon: Anatoliy Omelchenko, Triangle Tree
iBamboo Speaker: Anatoliy Omelchenko, Triangle Tree
AquaIris: Talia Radford with Juan Sebastian Gomez, TALIAYSEBASTIAN
"Planet Earth - Directions for Use": Angie Rattay, Angieneering- Design for Good
Sra Pou Vocational School: Hilla Rudanko with Anssi Kankkunen
Silverphone: Elizabeth S. Schultz with Zane Coffin, Sung Jun Kim, and Jung Min Lee
Lota de Agua: Yasaman Sheri
Braille Buddy: Yasaman Sheri
Flow: Alberto Vasquez
"By definition, a social design award commemorating the ideas of Victor J. Papanek must represent a broad spectrum, in order to show that design for the real world of the 21st century has to serve widely diverging needs and approaches," says Gerald Bast, President University of Applied Arts Vienna. "As we received a great variety of projects, which all more or less followed a specific path, on this occasion the Victor J. Papanek Social Design Award will be presented to four different projects. With this decision, the jury also wished to send out a signal to future applicants concerning the expansive and visionary profile of the award."