Taiwan's international Golden Pin Concept Design Award (GPCDA) launches its 2016 call for entries, continuing last year’s theme of design concepts inspired by philosophies and ideologies from the huaren (Chinese-speaking) world.
As the award opens its international call for entries, the Taipei Design Center, executors of the Golden Pin Concept Design Award, today announce an additional honor of an official GPCDA Design Mark for all finalists. The new Design Mark aims to inspire the next generation of designers to understand the contemporary and historical cultural context of huaren design and utilize it in tomorrow’s most influential products and projects, while also bringing the competition further in line with its sister award, the Golden Pin Design Award.
The Golden Pin Concept Design Award, launched in 2015, is an annual award that offers a total of NT$900,000 (more than US$27,000) in cash prizes. Entrants are encouraged to consider philosophies, ideologies, principles, or areas of thought attributable to huaren culture or lifestyles in their submitted concepts, as well as the Chinese concept of zhongguan (中觀). While separately the words mean ‘center’ or ‘middle’ (zhong) and ‘to observe’ or ‘to watch’ (guan), the meaning of the combined phrase is much deeper–something akin to “mastery gained from the perspective afforded those at the center of things.”
In 2015, 2,384 entries were submitted to the GPCDA from 15 countries and areas around the world, including China, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, and Hong Kong, as well as nations farther afield, such as India, Russia, the UK, the USA, Italy, Vietnam, and South Korea, and more. A judging panel–chaired by Taddy Ho, Director, Operating Committee, BBDO Taiwan Advertising Co. Ltd, Taiwan, and including Vivian Cheng, Creative Director, Vivian Design, Hong Kong; He Ren Ke, Dean and Professor, School of Design, Hunan University (China); Civi Cheng, Assistant Professor, Department of Applied Arts, Fu Jen Catholic University and Artistic Advisor, Keystone Design Limited (Taiwan); and Huang, Sheng-Yuan, Principal, Fieldoffice Architects (Taiwan)–reviewed submitted concept designs that explored themes such as environmental pollution, the revival of traditional practices, and the transformation of familiar Chinese forms.
This year, entries will be assessed in three stages by a carefully selected international jury. All entrants that pass the second round of selection will be awarded a GPCDA Design Mark and a certificate. Best Design of the Year winners will receive one of three cash prizes awarded at a grand ceremony in Taipei, Taiwan in December, each worth NT$300,000 (approx. US$9,800). All winners will receive additional benefits in the form of promotional and exhibition opportunities offered by the Golden Pin Concept Design Award team.
“We hope that the competition will continue to deepen the dialogue and exchange about huaren culture, and celebrate the rich vocabulary of huaren design, which arises from a unique blend of Eastern and Western influences,” says Wenlong Chen, CEO of the Taiwan Design Center. “The Golden Pin Concept Design Award aims to encourage collaboration between designers to raise the profile of huaren design on the international stage.”
The competition is open to submissions from students, professionals, and corporations from around the world, and accepts product and project design concepts in four design disciplines: Product Design, Visual Communication Design, Packaging Design, and Spatial Design. Concept designs must not be available in the market, nor may they be produced within the year of the award.
The competition is the third addition to a group of awards run by the Taiwan Design Center under the Golden Pin banner, which also includes the Golden Pin Design Award, which celebrates huaren products and projects available in the market, and the Young Pin Design Award, which showcases local graduate student talent.
Entry Details and Timeline
The below dates may be subject to change.
To enter, visit: http://www.goldenpin.org.tw/en/.
Entry deadline: June 15, 2016
Entry fee: FREE
Preliminary Selection: early July 2016
Secondary Selection: mid-late August 2016
Final Selection: October 2016
Award Ceremony: early December 2016
The Golden Pin Concept Design Award is executed by the Taiwan Design Center and organized by the Industrial Development Bureau, Ministry of Economic Affairs. The Ministry of Economic Affairs acts in an advisory capacity.
For the latest news on the Golden Pin Design Award, visit:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/goldenpinconcept
Weibo: http://www.weibo.com/p/1006065181797743/home?from=page_100606&mod=TAB#place
For more insight into what it means to the design for the huaren market, visit: http://designperspectives.org/.
Media Enquiries:
Kate Nicholson
International Media Liaison, DDG
kate.nicholson@ddg.com.tw
+886 2 2772 5850 x 180
Entrant Enquiries:
Zoe Chen
Golden Pin Concept Design Award Team
yiling_chen@tdc.org.tw
+886 2 27458199 x 337
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