When it comes to award programs, I’m no silent advocate. It’s the one place that houses all the best designs, adding new projects to its list every year. As a designer myself, I just love scrolling through galleries, seeing what my contemporaries are up to. Plus, you never know when inspiration strikes. The mind works like a creative bank. The more you put in, the more it generates… and by that theory, just scrolling through a feed of incredible design is sure to spark your mind with creative genius. It has worked for me!
A’ Design Award and Competition’s winner galleries are exceptional because they’re so incredibly diverse. No matter what you find interesting, there’s a category of winning designs for you, ranging all the way from Transportation, to Medical, to Architecture, Consumer Electronics, Toy Design, to even more niche categories like Social Design, Futuristic Design, and Differently-Abled Design (just think of a category, and it’ll be there). The aim of A’ Design’s diverse approach is to house all incredible works and projects under one single umbrella, and therefore be the go-to awards program for any and all creative work.
The point I’m trying to make is, the idea is to be inspired by looking at great work and then do great work yourself to inspire others, therefore helping the wheel of creativity and great design turn. In fact, here’s a set of 10 rather amazing pieces of work I found to be pretty inspirational. Just looking at these designs will get those creative juices flowing, and when they do, develop them into products that will garner attention, gather awards, and sit proudly in your portfolios, and on our site too! Go ahead… Scroll through!
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YD Handpicks: 10 Inspirational designs from the A’ Design Award and Competition 2016-17 Winners
01. Flike by Maform
Undoubtedly James-Bond-ish in its approach, the Flike is a Flying Bike that puts a man on a tri-copter drone. Designed with an electric/hybrid power train, the Flike can go up to speeds of 100 km/h and can reach a height of 30 meters. These limits were set electronically, so as to maximize safety, and Maform says they’ve built working prototypes already… hmmm!
02. Silhouette Collection by Libero Rutilo
Libero Rutilo’s work with PET bottles is nothing if not exemplary. Here’s a look back at the Leaf made by Libero that everyone instantly loved! The Silhouette collection shown here, gives PET bottles a second life by cladding them in intricately printed exoskeletons, turning them from boring pieces of plastic, to the most interesting vases you’ll own!
03. Fume by Hakan Gürsu
Interesting fact. Hakan Gursu stands at the top of A’ Design’s World Designer Rankings with a mind-blowing total of 83 A’ Design Awards over the years! The Fume got him yet another award this year for its beautiful design. Just a simple tinted transparent acrylic cube, the Fume acts as a rather beautiful pen-stand for your alcohol markers (something designers swear by). Its design doesn’t just have them laid out in an interesting format, it even allows you to segregate them by hue into three zones… One for color, one for warm grays, and one for cool grays. Genius!
04. Renard GT by Andres Uibomäe
The Renard GT tries to channel the spirit of a 1930s motorbike into a form factor that is modern and undeniably unique. The Renard GT’s carbon-fiber unibody integrates the motorcycle’s frame, fuel tank, and air box, while weighing just 9 kgs and looking so good, it could kill!
05. Filoferru by Robby Cantarutti
Nice chair, right? It’s made from individually looped pieces of metal piping, giving it a hypnotic quality. The pipes form everything from the chair’s legs, to the backrest, to the seat to even armrests! I personally love how it looks like a Slinky was bent into forming a seating device!
06. SpiderPan by Receb Bilici
Look out! Here comes the Spider-Pan!
The Spider-Pan was named so for its hexagonal design and its spider-leg inspired handles that do something rather wonderful. When you need to hold the pan like a saucepan, the handles fold outwards and join, to become an extended single handle. However, the handles separate and fold inwards too, forming two separate gripping points on either side of the utensil, perfect for heavier food items that need to be held with both hands. Ingenious, isn’t it? Plus, the handles when folded in are a great space saver in drawers and cabinets!
07. 01: Dimensioning Instrument by InstruMMents Inc.
As a proud owner of the 01 Dimensioning Pen by InstruMMents, I have to say… it’s absolutely spoiled me for scales and tape measures. The pen features a one of a kind rolling ring and a laser pointing guide that allows you to simply (and digitally) capture measurements both regular and non-linear with sheer accuracy. All measurements (accurate to the nearest 1/10th of a millimeter, get stored on the InstruMMents app, allowing you to save data for later use. Plus, the pen itself comes with interchangeable pencil, roller-ball, and stylus heads!
08. Paq by Maform
Maform’s second project to feature on this list isn’t as detailed or as intense as its previous one, but it explores something fun and quirky. The Paq, a seating made entirely from a sheet of foam and a cylinder, serves as a sitting stool and mattress when opened out, but by virtue of clever design, turns into a rather fun beanbag-inspired chair with a backrest that can be set up by not just adults, but by children (with a little practice) too! Pretty interesting form exploration, don’t you think??
09. Ji Mu by Bowen Qian
Using just a series of wooden ‘L’ sections, Bowen Quian creates a variety of furniture pieces by just fixing them at different places. The simple L shaped wooden ply pieces become a chair with a backrest but lay them out in a square shape, and you have a table who’s height matches perfectly with your L Chair. You can even make a wine bottle holder, or a magazine holder by fixing them together in an X shaped layout! What other orientations and products can you think of using these innovative wooden ‘L’ sections??
10. DuoSkin by Cindy Hsin-Liu Kao
DuoSkin presents the future of body-art that just doesn’t serve the purpose of art, but involves an element of interaction design too! The thin metal foil laid out on the skin has the ability to conduct electricity, or even act as a sensor, becoming one of the first fashion-oriented bio-tech products, not just serving a medical purpose, but even going as far as becoming interfaces for the products we use. Imagine being able to type out messages on your skin, or unlock your door with a pattern drawn on your fore-arm, or initiating a 911 emergency call using a secret button placed against your skin. The possibilities are literally endless!
Inspired?? Register for the A’ Design Award and Competition today!
