Winners of Only for Women 2010
Once again this year, the results of the international competition of design ONLY FOR WOMEN reserved surprises: 448 projects were submitted to the jury. Many were from abroad. The three winners were not Italian, but two out of the three awarded honourable mentions were Italians. The projects were of high quality and this made the commitment of the jurors engaging.
Only for Women by Area Declic 2010
1st prize
The jury awarded first prize to the TEDDY chair designed by Ekaterina Labinskaya for its strong communicative force: its anthropomorphous features and the combination with the cover make it a project that immediately strikes. The chair is also stackable, and meets both the image and the characteristic productive capacity of Area Declic.
Ekaterina Labinskaya, after having studied at the Urali Design Academy and after having taken her Masters in Italy, she founded the “MD – design” studio in Izhevsk, Russia.
2nd prize
The jury awarded second prize to the STRIKE chair designed by Angela Gilbert, for its innovative characteristics: designed to minimize waste, the seat is made from a single sheet of laser cut aluminium that was bent and fixed in a way that strongly invites us to sit. It is stackable and easily recyclable.
Angela Gilbert studied Industrial Design at Sheffield Hallam University and graduated in 2000. In 2008, she opened the “Gilbert13” studio with Mark Gilbert in Manchester, Great Britain.
3rd prize
The jury awarded second prize to the 4SKIS bench designed by Marcelle Van der Leeuw, for the simple elegance of its Design, which is a refined rustic bench that can be easily adapted to any ski resort, or in the courtyards of Italian inns. This project is foldable and is easily stackable, disassembled and recycled.
After having studied at the Academy of Fine arts in Zwolle, Holland, Marcelle Van der Leeuw, founded “Het blad van de bomen” in Meppel, where he produces wooden furniture of his own creation.
The following projects have received an HONOURABLE MENTION:
The jury assigned an Honourable Mention to the Croquet seat designed by Raffaella Cardia and Claudia Heiniger, for its practicality, innovation in the function of use, and its simple construction: consisting of a metal frame and a suitably shaped fabric, it can be easily disassembled and reassembled. It has three legs and by inserting the legs into the ground, the chair can be stabilized.
Raffaella Cardia, architect and designer founded the BOCA studio in Turin. She also teaches at the Polytechnic University. Claudia Heiniger is a free lance designer who works and lives in Turin and Seoul. She is one of the founders of the Design Postfossil platform.
The jury assigned an Honourable Mention to the RE-COLOUR pouf designed by Kinga Gajewska, for its high level of communication combined with the idea of reusing second hand materials: a big bunch of cables with a metal-coated core covered in multi-coloured plastic, are grouped and bound together to form different types of seating.
After having graduated from Architecture and Urbanism at the Warsaw University of Technology, Kinga Gajewska founded the "ARCHITEKCI” studio, together with Michal Wypysiak in 2005.
The jury assigned an Honourable Mention to the LIEVE seat designed by Vera Galeotti, because the shape and the colour of the project strongly remind us of the female world: it is reminiscent of the seat used to carry babies. At the same time is offers original and complex features that is creatively achieved.
Vera Galeotti is one of the youngest participants in the 2010 edition of ONLY FOR WOMEN. She studies Interior Design at the Palladio Design Institute in Verona.