Entries open for Australia’s most significant furniture design award

elliat-rich_standing-place

The National Gallery Victoria (NGV) and Stylecraft are proud to present the Australian Furniture Design Award 2020 as part of Melbourne Design Week. The biennial award
fosters Australian designers and makers through professional mentoring, commercial production opportunities and a $20,000 prize.

Designers are invited to make submissions responding to the Melbourne Design
Week 2020 theme ‘How can design shape life?’ to be judged by an industry jury
including Tony Russell, Brand Director, Stylecraft; Simone LeAmon, The Hugh
Williamson Curator, Contemporary Design and Architecture, NGV; Brian Parkes,
CEO, JamFactory and Helen Kontouris, Designer and Creative Director, LEN.

‘We are proud to present Australia’s most significant design award for furniture,
developed to recognise excellence in Australian furniture design and its contribution
to design discourse and Australian culture’ said Tony Ellwood AM, Director, NGV.

‘We are excited to continue the legacy of this important award which offers a unique combination of recognition, professional development, financial support and commercial opportunity for the winning designer, recognising that furniture practice
contributes both to our culture and economy,’ said Anthony Collins, MD of
Stylecraft.

‘We are excited to continue the legacy of this important award which offers a
unique combination of recognition, professional development, financial support and
commercial opportunity for the winning designer, recognising that furniture practice
contributes both to our culture and economy,’ said Anthony Collins, MD of
Stylecraft.elliat-rich-other-places-sophie-gannon-gallery-2018_standing-place_022

Open to all Australian designers and makers, Stage One of the Australian Furniture
Design Award is now open for registrations. Submissions for a new and original
furniture design concept close on 22 November 2019. A shortlist of five entrants
will be invited to proceed to Stage Two and present their realised designs for
exhibition and judging at the Stylecraft showroom during Melbourne Design Week
2020. Shortlisted entrants will receive an honorarium of $1,000 to assist with the
realisation of their design for exhibition.

The Hugh Williamson Curator, Contemporary Design and Architecture, NGV,
Simone LeAmon said the award jury will be looking for submissions that
demonstrate critical and creative thinking and explore new design and production
processes. ‘This award focuses on the many ways that furniture design can
contribute to our cultural, economic, social and ecological world. It seeks to reveal
how design can be put to work to shape life – whether as a critical practice,
cultural discourse or tool of industry and commerce.’ said LeAmon.elliat-rich-other-places-sophie-gannon-gallery-2018_tall-place_04-002

The winning designer will receive a $20,000 cash prize, an invitation from Stylecraft
to develop a design through to commercial production for distribution and a two week
residency program at JamFactory in Adelaide to experiment with new ideas
and materials, prototype new work or explore new making processes.

The Australian Furniture Design Award is presented by NGV and Stylecraft as part
of Melbourne Design Week 2020, an initiative of the Victorian Government in
collaboration with the NGV. The awards competition is coordinated by Citylab.

For more information including registration for Australian Furniture Design Award,
visit ngv.melbourne/afda