Accent on Design(R) Accepts Four New Designers Into A+™: The Young Designers’ Platform
Four designers and design companies from the United States and Europe have been invited to participate in the “A+: The Young Designers’ Platform” showcase within Accent on Design® at the winter 2011 New York International Gift Fair® (NYIGF®). Representing diverse geographic and cultural backgrounds, these new designers will introduce a range of products, including housewares, lighting, personal accessories and gardening accessories.
“These emerging talents have innovatively merged form with function,” said Dorothy Belshaw, GLM senior vice president and NYIGF director. “Their products elevate everyday tasks – like sharpening pencils and lighting work spaces – with an infusion of modern design.”
Participants in the winter 2011 edition of A+: The Young Designers’ Platform are: Dana Cannam of danacannamdesign; Hongjie Yang; Jinseok Hwang of studioLOBOT; and Ricky Giacco of Concrete R&D LLC. Designer profiles, and details about the products each will introduce at Accent on Design, follow:
Dana Cannam, danacannamdesign
After receiving his masters of design degree from the Design Academy in Eindhoven, Netherlands, Dana Cannam founded the danacannamdesign studio in 2009. Focusing on interaction and product design, the company has developed products ranging from desk lamps to augmented reality smart phone applications.
Cannam’s product introduction, the clamplamp, explores the concept of honesty in design. The main objective is to maximize the functionality of a solid unfinished material, rather than adding unwanted components. The lamp is manufactured with minimal environmental impact. The entire system, including the energy-efficient LED strip, is compression-fit, with no glue or screws holding it together. http://danacannamdesign.com
Hongjie Yang
A graduate of the Columbus College of Art & Design in Columbus, OH, with a BFA in Industrial Design, Yang has won several design competitions for his utilitarian products, including a transportable medical case for emergency responders.
Yang will introduce four new products at NYIGF: Veer, a stainless steel soap dispenser; Chromis, a recycled aluminum pencil sharpener inspired by the form of fish; theLiquido iPhone case; and the acrylic Hydro+ 20 oz. intelligent water bottle, which tracks the user’s daily hydration cycles. http://ccad.digication.com/
Jinseok Hwang, studioLOBOT
Jinseok Hwang, a Senior Industrial Designer at frog design in New York, graduated from Hong Ik University in Seoul Korea with a BFA in Industrial Design. Selected as the “Next Generation Designer” in 2010 by the South Korean government, Hwang has won several design awards, such as the LG International Design Award and the Korean Good Design Award. He has developed products in a wide range of categories, including consumer products, electronics, equipment, and furniture.
One of Hwang’s newest designs, the Task Lamp, brings a modern look and feel to desk lighting. Its well-engineered hinge system provides flexibility to cover a limited task area. Its body is made from machine-processed light aluminum, with a long-lasting LED light source.
Ricky Giacco, Concrete R&D LLC
More than five years ago, designer Ricky Giacco of Wilmington, DE, was introduced to the idea of decorative concrete, and sculptural casting with everyday concrete. After he started a design/build company constructing large custom planter installations, he began perfecting the craft of making concrete look like polished stone. The boundaries of traditional concrete were pushed even further when Giacco began adding recycled plastics as an additive, along with natural materials found on the Mid-Atlantic coast, such as sand, sea shells, pine cones and pine needles.
The Delaware Coast Planter series is Concrete R&D’s first product line. Each 4” planter is individually crafted with the “eco-concrete” mix which includes 40% recycled and sustainable materials. The built-to-last planters promote optimum plant growth through superior drainage, aeration and insulation. www.
A+ applicants are selected by the Accent on Design Selection Committee, whose members include: David Alhadeff, The Future Perfect; Miguel Calvo of Design & Research; Ilene Shaw of Shaw + Co! Productions; Wilma Wabnitz of Wabnitz Editions Ltd.; and Noel Wiggins of Areaware. The exhibit is curated by the American Design Club (AmDC). Founded in 2008, AmDC is a professional community of American designers whose goal is to heighten awareness for emerging designers and provide exhibition opportunities.
“A+: The Young Designers’ Platform” at Accent on Design runs Sunday, January 30, through Thursday, February 3, 2011, at New York City’s Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. Accent on Design is a dynamic, juried collection of nearly 200 contemporary and innovative exhibiting companies across the gift, home, and lifestyle spectrum. Accent on Design has been the industry’s leading resource for design-led merchandise for over 25 years.
NYIGF is the nation's premier gift, home and lifestyle marketplace, with 2,800 exhibiting companies featuring an extraordinary breadth and depth of design-driven home fashion products and complementary giftware. Some 35,000 attendees from all 50 states and more than 85 countries worldwide are expected. Information and registration is available online at www.nyigf.com.
