The Design Institute of Australia (DIA) – Australia’s peak national design body, has revealed the recipients for its highly sought-after Designers Australia Awards 2022.
The final winners out of a shortlist of eighty-two across the country reflect the designer’s ability to make a solid contribution to a better world, including three National winners, a President’s Award and forty-five Merit Awards.
The awards, a first for the industry, identify Australia’s preeminent designers and studios, calling attention to the individual/s and their distinguished design processes as much as the outcome.
Cobalt Design for Cobalt – magAssist VAD Heart Pump received the winning ‘Use’ award, and Culture as Creative for SAY IT LOUD Naarm Melbourne 2022 won ‘Interact’. Kennedy Nolan for Always won the ‘Place’ category, and Ros and John Moriarty received the President’s Award.
Backed by the institute, the DIA’s Designers Australia Awards are different in their categories and criteria to most of the design awards currently offered in Australia.
The awards recognise the most nuanced design thinking applied across the categories Place, Use, Interact and dissolve the traditional silos, reflecting a trend toward multi-disciplinary approaches and problem-solving.
They replace conventional design categories such as industrial, interior, graphic, digital, product, environmental, textile, fashion, etc.
“The DIA believes that designers and their contribution shape everything around us and that this ‘contribution’ is most effective when design is accurately investigated,” said DIA President Gavin Campbell FDIA.
“The Designers Australia Awards represent design by ethics and promote ideas, creativity, diversity, and processes. This year the award winners and merit awards reinforced great design’s social, cultural, economic and environmental ramifications.”
Awards juror Kate Goodwin, Professor of Practise, in Architecture at the University of Sydney, integrating curatorial practice with teaching and former Head of Architecture and Heinz Curator at the Royal Academy of Arts in London comments:
“As we face increasing ecological, social and economic challenges, globally and locally, rethinking how we live in and interact with the world is vital,” she said.
“In selecting this year’s winners, we were looking for great designers who reimagine our interaction with the world, creating inspiring places, objects and experiences. The DIA’s Designers Australia Awards exemplify the calibre of Australian design ingenuity and integrity.”
“It was fantastic to be a part of an awards programme distinguished for recognising the link between the process—how designers work with clients and contexts and meaningful outcomes,” said Ms Goodwin.
Leading jurors representing a broad cross-section of the international and local design community include Professor Cameron Bruhn, Gavin Campbell, Dr Nathan James Crane, Penny Craswell, Emma Elizabeth, Kate Goodwin, Adam de Guara, Dale Hardiman, Tuba Kocaturk, Dr Laura Kostanski, Shay McMahon, David Meagher, Liane Rossler, Andrew Scott, Thomas Skeehan, Ellie Stathaki, Abdullah M.I. Syed and Karen Webster.
The Design Institute of Australia (DIA), Australia’s peak national body driving the design industry, is pleased to announce that seven eminent Australian designers will be inducted into the DIA – Hall of Fame.
Prue Action, Robert Backhouse, Dorothy Erickson, Aison Forbes, Robert Geddes, Jefa Greenaway and Jenny Grigg. The DIA – Hall of Fame is an enduring record of the pioneers, ambassadors and contributors to the Australian design industry.
It showcases Australia’s design visionaries and leaders, and celebrates their significant contribution to Australia’s economic development and cultural identity
Established in 1948, the Design Institute of Australia (DIA) is the only national member body that champions the value of the all the design disciplines and the impact of our designers. Its purpose is to help designers prosper by providing knowledge, thought leadership, access and inclusivity.
The DIA is the leading advocate for design with the most extensive design professional network, champions design excellence, progressive change, and is a trusted voice in the national conversation.
It engages with and educates designers, the government, and our broader society and fosters collaborations for designers to engage across the industry and community.
For more information on the winning recipients, the Awards of Merit and the Design Awards, visit: www.awards.design.org.au for details.
Image: Winners of the Designers Australia Awards 2022 (supplied)
Designers Australia Awards 2022 Winning Recipients:
PLACE category winner:
Kennedy Nolan for Always was identified for their exemplary approach focusing on a sensitive and holistic design methodology that combines the inside and outside seamlessly. The architects were honoured for sensitive and reflective material selections connecting and engaging with the landscape, architecture, surroundings and history.
USE category winner:
Cobalt Design for Cobalt – magAssist VAD Heart Pump was praised for their rigorous, intelligent and valuable interdisciplinary design process and exploration of the concept, which translates to a life-saving outcome. The first of its kind, Cobalt’s device provides blood flow to supplement or replace heart function via surgically inserted inflow and outflow cannulas.
INTERACT category winner:
Culture as Creative for SAY IT LOUD Naarm Melbourne 2022 has been recognised for its circular design approach informed by investigation, understanding, assessment and interaction. The SAY IT LOUD exhibition represented strong cross-disciplinary collaboration through partnerships and society, encouraging design debate and access to vital information.
President’s Award recipient:
Ros and John Moriarty, founders of Balarinji, were applauded for their unique approach toward collaboration and inclusivity, respectful design processes, and overall enduring commitment to the profession over the years.