Christchurch Designers Win Top Awards

October 8, 2007

Christchurch Designers Win Top Awards

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Christchurch designers proved once and for all that you don’t have to be in Auckland to do good design, scooping an impressive 17 awards at this year’s national BeST Design Awards – New Zealand designs equivalent of the Oscars.

Organised by the Designers Institute of New Zealand, the awards, which celebrate the very best of New Zealand design from the past year across the disciplines of product, spatial and graphics, were presented at a glittering black tie event, attended by around 600 people, at Auckland’s Aotea Centre on Friday, October 5.

Over 633 entries were received for the awards, up an impressive 20% from last year. Cathy Veninga, Chief Executive Officer of the Designers Institute of New Zealand said the standard of entries was “phenomenal” and paid tribute to the immense design talent that we have in New Zealand.

Christchurch based Strategy Design & Advertising were among the six Christchurch based design companies who were awarded prizes at this year’s awards.

The company, who have won a number of awards at previous year’s events, took home an impressive nine awards in the graphic design category, which included a gold, silver and seven bronzes.

Strategy Design & Advertising, led by Design Directors Guy Pask and Douglas Maclean, won gold in the Environmental Graphics category for their innovative promotional campaign Giacometti Shadows, which saw “shadows” of famous 20th Century artworks sprouting up all over Christchurch earlier this year to draw attention to the Christchurch Art Gallery’s Giacometti exhibition.

Strategy Design & Advertising’s Creative Director Guy Pask said the gallery’s limited budget invited a fun, low-cost campaign for maximum effect. “The creative team made 10m tall vinyl silhouettes of Giacometti’s Walking Man and Standing Woman and attached them to the gallery’s facades, which created large scale shadows across the entrance foyer.”

They also created similar shaped shadows all around the city. “Anywhere we could find a lamp post or anything that would lend itself to being brought into the campaign we used – including the city’s bronze corgi sculptures.”

The judges said the entry demonstrated the power of a good idea well executed.

In addition to gold, Strategy Design & Advertising also won silver in the Identity Development (Large Scale) category for the development of the Christchurch Arts Festival identity.

The judges said the entry was “international in execution” and that it was an “unexpected solution which pushed the boundaries creatively and conceptually.”

The company also won seven bronzes in the Graphic Design Arts, Self Promotion, Packaging, Identity Development (Small Scale), Broadcast Graphic Design and Visual Communication categories.

Other Christchurch design companies that picked up awards on the night included Q Brand; who won bronze in the Environmental Graphics category for Body Festival and bronze in the Packaging category for Survival on Arrival; Infact LTD, who won silver in the Non-Consumer Product category for the Metro Pay and Display Parking Meter; 4ormfunction who won silver in the Consumer Product category for the F20 - GPS Navigation Device; Applied Design Development, who won bronze for the Exelite Backpack Cover; and City Solutions, who won silver in the Public and Institutional Spaces (spatial) category for their entry, World Peace Bell Pavilion.

The BeST Design Awards were established in 1988 and have been held annually since 1996.

www.bestawards.co.nz

ENDS

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