Just who is the best of the BeST?

Media Release
September 28, 2007

Just who is the best of the BeST?

What does an upside down pot plant; an eco-coffin; a sexy street pole; a revitalised beer brand; a swanky Auckland Hotel and a shadowy exhibition have in common?

These groundbreaking designs may on the surface share very few similarities, but what they do have in common is they are all finalists in the annual BeST Design Awards – New Zealand designs equivalent of the Oscars.

Organised by the Designers Institute of New Zealand, the BeST Design Awards, which will be held at a glittering black tie event at Auckland’s Aotea Centre on Friday, October 5, celebrate the very best of New Zealand design across the disciplines of product, spatial and graphics.

This year the awards, which are in their 19th year, attracted a record 633 entries, up an impressive 20% from last year.

Cathy Veninga, Chief Executive Officer of the Designers Institute of New Zealand said the standard of entries, especially in the graphics category, was ‘phenomenal’ and paid tribute to the immense design talent that we have in New Zealand.

Says Ms Veninga: “Designers across the three disciplines demonstrated world-class design in terms of creativity, innovation and skill. Our design industry in New Zealand is truly coming of age and the standard of work being produced by our designers is world leading.”

Awards to be given on the night include the highly coveted ‘Stringers,’ which will be given to the outstanding entry within each discipline of graphic, spatial and product design. This year for the first time ever, gold, silver and bronze awards will also be given in each category, which, Ms Veninga says, will allow the designs to be judged on their true merits and not just by comparison.

Other awards to be given on the night include the prestigious John Britten Award; which recognises a person who has made an outstanding contribution to the New Zealand design industry, and the DINZ Outstanding Achievement Award; which is given to a person within the Designers Institute of New Zealand who has made an extraordinary contribution to the Institute and to design in general.

It’s expected that up to 600 people, including Prime Minister Helen Clark, will attend the awards ceremony, which is being hosted by TV3’s Alastair Wilkinson and Carolyn Robinson.

Previous winners of the BeST Design Awards include DesignWorks Enterprise IG, Navman, Icebreaker and Tom Skyring for his design of the Dine by Peter Gordon restaurant.

An exhibition showcasing the winners and finalists of the awards will be on display at the Auckland War Memorial Museum from October 5 – 20, before it travels to Tauranga (29 October – 3 November) and Christchurch (12 November – 17 November).

The BeST Design Awards originated in 1988, and have been held annually since 1996.

www.bestawards.co.nz

ENDS

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