designboom presents LEXUS design award 2019 finalists

LEXUS design award 2019: running for its seventh consecutive year, designboom is co-organizing the LEXUS DESIGN AWARD 2019 competition— the leading mentored awards presented every year during milan design week (see last year’s winner here.) 

the LEXUS design award provides an opportunity for young innovators to showcase their works while receiving feedback from world-renowned professionals in the area of design. through this initiative, LEXUS intends to nurture and support world-enriching creators. for 2019 edition, more than 1,600 projects were submitted via the call published on designboom which comprised the period from august 9th to october 28th, 2018. see the call for entries here.

LEXUS design award 2019 jury: sir david adjaye, paola antonelli, john maeda, yoshihiro sawa

this year’s finalists employed technology in even more creative ways to spark new ideas and conceptualize transformative solutions that have the power to change lives. most of the solution concepts below looked to address the challenges of tomorrow today including biodegradable materials, renewable energy sources and reduction of our carbon footprint.

according to technologist and 2019 LDA judge, john maeda, ‘this year’s submissions revealed a strong awareness of the connectedness of our world and the need for increased social consciousness. it’s clear that the fusion of classical design and computational design is now happening especially in the minds of designers looking to solve our world’s biggest problems. I’m optimistic that as we continue to nurture and embrace this new generation of designers we’ll see a better tomorrow.’

mentors: sebastian wrong, jessica rosenkrantz, shohei shigematsu and jaime hayon

earlier this month, the finalists engaged in a 2-day mentoring workshop at the recently opened intersect by LEXUS brand space in the heart of new york’s meatpacking district. here, four globally acclaimed designers: jessica rosenkrantz, shohei shigematsu, sebastian wrong and jaime hayon offered inspiration and their diverse expertise to kick-off and prepare the finalists to start creating their prototypes.

hayon, who served as a judge on the first LEXUS design award in 2013, returns as a mentor this year, and said: ‘the finalist’s ideas are very interesting, and some are truly breaking boundaries. through the mentoring workshop, I myself was also inspired by interacting with a different generation who looks at technology for the 21st century from a fresh angle. further the varied backgrounds of the mentors made the whole project richer.’ he added, ‘milan design week is a big boom of ideas and a wonderful environment for an international exchange of creativity, a perfect place for the finalists to show courage and challenge this great opportunity.’

following the inspiring and highly valuable workshop, finalists will have ongoing access to each mentor as they develop their prototypes during the months leading up to milan design week in april. their prototypes will then be displayed at the LEXUS event space in milan on april 8th. prototypes will be judged by four world-renown design leaders and select the LEXUS design award 2019 grand prix winner.

the theme for the LEXUS design award 2019 is ‘DESIGNING FOR A BETTER TOMORROW — ANTICIPATE, INNOVATE, CAPTIVATE’: 

designers were asked to consider how their creative ideas incorporate three fundamental principles from the LEXUS brand: anticipate, innovate, and captivate, as well as how their design anticipates the needs of tomorrow’s society. they were tasked with developing innovative designs that bring fresh imaginative solutions. at the same time, their ideas and designs should be captivating and engaging to the audience and more importantly, the assembled panel of esteemed judges.

WINNERS

ALGORITHMIC LACE

designer: lisa marks 
country: USA

this bra, made for post-mastectomy women, is custom crafted using a new methodology using algorithmic patterning to make three-dimensional lace. this avoids aspects of the bra that create discomfort after surgery, and give each woman a confidence in her new beginning.

lisa marks is an industrial designer specializing in combining craft research with algorithmic design in order to promote sustainable methods to help craft communities. lisa has an MFA from parsons school of design and is currently faculty at georgia institute of technology.

ARENOPHILE

designer: rezzan hasoglu
country: turkey / country of residence: UK

this project seeks a new purpose for desert sand, a naturally abundant material which has not been widely used. by creating composite materials using desert sand and non-toxic binders, arenophile proposes new products through experimentation and research.

rezzan hasoglu is a product designer based in london. she graduated from the royal college of art. her design approach is very hands-on whilst combining digital tools. focused on research and experimentation inspired from natural phenomena, she seeks ways of translating cultural nuances into tangible objects through exploring processes and materials.

BALUTO

designer: jeffrey e. dela cruz 
country: philippines

the baluto project seeks a solution in low-lying areas where the main concern is flood mitigation. this housing strategy provides a habitable space on land that can withstand a sudden rise in flood water level.

jeffrey dela cruz is an architecture graduate from saint louis university, baguio city, philippines. he interprets filipino architectural designs and is often inspired by indigenous forms, materials and constructions. he hopes his work will eventually have an impact in the research field.

GREEN BLAST JET ENERGY

designer: dmitriy balashov
country: russia

green blast jet energy makes it possible to collect the energy of the jet blast of an aircraft taking off and to return it for different needs of airports.

dmitriy balashov specializes in industrial design. he studied at the bauman moscow state technical university. he is inspired by unique and innovative ideas that offer comfort and rationality.

HYDRUS

designer: shuzhan yuan
country: china

hydrus is an emergency treatment equipment for offshore oil spills. this equipment does not only try to solve one problem, but also encourages people to deal with the changes in our earth’s environment.

shuzhan yuan is a product designer and graduated from xiamen university of technology. he tries to encourage deep thinking about meaningful things in our life through design. he compares design with the study and interpretation of this unknown world.

SOLGAMI

designer: prevalent (ben berwick)
country: australia

solgami utilizes origami geometry to give apartment residents a closer connection to their external environment. formed as a window blind, this geometry provides privacy, and puts the user in charge of deciding between greater internal illumination, or electricity generation.

ben berwick runs prevalent, an architectural startup focusing on social spaces and spatial technology. he specializes in advanced design, and received a master’s degree in engineering whilst a fellow at the university of tokyo. he has a background in architecture from the university of sydney, where he now teaches.