Apr / 4 / 2009 ¬

White Elephant DesignLab Wins "CRYSTALLIZED™ – Swarovski Elements Call For Tender"

The light object Crystalswitch by White Elephant DesignLab made the grade at the award ceremony of the „CRYSTALLIZED™ - Swarovski Elements Call For Tender“ contest. On Thursday evening April 2, the jury decisions were solemnly announced in the presence of 100 invited guests in Vienna's Loos House. Designer Alexandra Bammer finished second with Crystal Signs in braille, followed by Vienna-based Designstudio destilat with their light object Andromeda.

With the awards ceremony last Thursday, 2 April 2009, the competition "CRYSTALLIZED™ - Swarovski Elements Call For Tender" came to an end. From the 12 objects nominated for the final round the international jury selected 3 winners on the same day. In the summer of 2008, designers had been asked to develop products and furniture involving CRYSTALLIZED™ - Swarovski Elements as a design element. The finished product should be a commercial product, which can go into industrial production right away and the crystal should be an integral part of it.

The exhibition in the premises of the Looshaus on Vienna's Michaelerplatz presented the 12 nominated finalist works. Before and after the award ceremony, the invited guests - among them plenty of design prominence - had the chance to visualize via photographs, texts and prototypes the solutions found to integrate CRYSTALLIZED™ - Swarovski Elements in the field of products and furniture.

Crystal Switch by White Elephant DesignLab
As the award winner the jury voted Crystalswitch by White Elephant DesignLab from Graz, a light object which can be customized via a dedicated user-configurable crystal pixel grid. "What is special about the winning object is the "idea of customizing" which is charmingly resolved here and which many companies are agonizing over," was the justification for the jury. "The consumer interacts with the crystals, adapting them to his mood or using them as a communication tool. The demand to convert this product into a commercial product is fulfilled. The application of the Swarovski crystals has a great potential and the execution is very simple.

Just the simplicity of the solution and its versatile applicability convinced the jury. ""The overall look still needs refining, but the idea is very good", jury member Sophie Stanbury from Swarovski comments on the worthy winner."

Crystal Signs by Alexandra Bammer
Designer Alexandra Bammer from Ernstbrunn (Lower Austria) made the grade for the second place with Crystal Signs. Her blinking signs represent a multifunctional lettering system with adhesive crystals, especially thought for visually handicapped people. The conceptual aspect of transforming braille into an optical stimulus, not to be seen by the blind and thus sublating the stigma of the handicap, found an unanimously positive response with all the jury members.

"The tension lies in the fascinating contradiction that the crystals in a dark room give orientation to the sighted, while the blind also cope without it," Professor Dr. Peter Zec from red dot bases the jury's choice. The designer's approach needs "thinking outside the box" and oscillates between ironic and poetic. Furthermore, the jury pointed out that the minimalistic and very pointed approach can immediately be implemented, for instance in hotels.“

Andromeda by destilat
Another light object reached the winning ranks. "Andromeda" by Vienna-based design studio destilat finished third. Designed as a standing, hanging and table lamp, Andromeda shows a complex geometrical netting made of Swarovski Crystal Yarn with its highest density in the middle of the structure which thins out to the edges. Especially the exciting lighting effects geometrically generated by the light appealed to the jury.

"Andromeda works both as a beautiful lamp and a spatial object because it creates a space within a space that is expanding into different levels: in the three-dimensional level as well as in the dimension of the light. This leads to a superposition between the intangible and tangible concept of space from which a pleasant lightness emerges. The material used, Swarovski crystal yarn, is usually intertwined. For Andromeda this material is successfully alienated, the light generates beautiful effects by the small crystal pieces woven into the yarn,“ the jury justifies.

Sleeping Beauty by destilat Receives Audience Award
Winner of the public voting was Sleeping Beauty by destilat. The hybrid of sidetable and light cube made its way as an absolute crowd pleaser, only closely followed by Andromeda, another light object by destilat which finished 3rd at the overall competition.
Check the results of the Public Voting here.

All Photos © Georg Oberhumer, unless otherwise indicated

Entering the award ceremony in the exhibition premises of Loos House, Vienna.

Exhibition of the 12 entries nominated for the final round.

© foto-wurnig.com

Crystalswitch
White Elephant DesignLab
1st Prize
© White Elephant DesignLab / CRYSTALLIZED™ – Swarovski Elements

Crystal Signs (model) by Alexandra Bammer, 2nd Prize

© Photo: wurnig-foto.com

Andromeda
destilat
3rd Prize
© destilat / CRYSTALLIZED™ – Swarovski Elements

Florian Puschmann (White Elephant Design Lab), 1st Prize

Tobias Kestel (White Elephant Design Lab), 1st Prize

Thomas Neuber and Harald Hatschenberger (destilat), 3rd Prize

Julia Taubinger (JULAND *BarcelonaVienna)

Sylvie Vankeirsbilck (D. Swarovski & Co.)

Andrés Fredes (JULAND *BarcelonaVienna), Florian Puschmann (White Elephant Design Lab)

Sylvie Vankeirsbilck (D. Swarovski & Co.)

The jury members (from left to right): Andres Fredes (JULAND *BarcelonaVienna), Sophie Stanbury (D. Swarovski & Co.), Peter Zec (red dot design), Alison Clark (University of Applied Arts Vienna), Arne Quinze (Studio Arne Quinze), Carla Rumler (D. Swarovski & Co.), Julia Taubinger (JULAND *BarcelonaVienna), Thomas Bene (Bene AG)
© Foto: Georg Oberhumer / CRYSTALLIZED™ – Swarovski Elements

Florian Puschmann (White Elephant DesignLab) customizes the Crystalswitch.

© Photo: wurnig-foto.com

Henning Weimer (destilat), Sylvie Vankeirsbilck (D. Swarovski & Co.), Thomas Neuber (destilat), Harald Hatschenberger (destilat)

© Photo: wurnig-foto.com

© Photo: wurnig-foto.com

Christoph Thun-Hohenstein (departure)

© Photo: wurnig-foto.com

Crystalswitch (White Elephant DesignLab) being costumized.

© Photo: wurnig-foto.com

© wurnig-foto.com

Sylvie Vankeirsbilck (D. Swarovski & Co.), Annabelle Brameshuber (D. Swarovski & Co.)

Natasa Siencnik (JULAND *BarcelonaVienna), Franz Maurer (design by f maurer), Karin Lebinger (designgalerie)

Peter Zec (red dot), Thomas Bene (Bene AG)

Alison Clark (University of Applied Art Vienna)

Thomas Bene (Bene AG)

Tobias Kestel (White Elephant Design Lab)

Peter Zec (red dot)

Many designers were attending the exhibition and the award ceremony.

Sabrina Capelli (D. Swarovski & Co.)

Harald Hatschenberger (destilat)

Sophie Stanbury (D. Swarovski & Co.)

Franz Maurer (design by f maurer)

Arne Quinze (Studio Arne Quinze)

Natasa Siencnik (JULAND *BarcelonaVienna)

Karin Lebinger (designgalerie)

Karoline Seywald

SAVAR Crystallized : Room_I by CONVOIDESIGN

CRYSTALIT by designtrigger

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