SURTEX® Announces 2016 designext® Finalists
designext® recognizes talented art students,representing the future of surface design
SURTEX® exposition and conference, North America’s premier event for the sourcing and licensing of original art and design, today announces four international art students as finalists in the 2016 designext Competition.
To compete in the designext Competition, design students were asked to create six original surface designs inspired by “Tribal in Art Deco”. Their designs were to be applied to the surface of products and presented as a collection from one of the following four categories: Wear, Work, Live and Play.
Nearly 80 submissions were received from schools across the globe. A panel of judges reviewed the submissions during NY Now in February and selected the four finalists who will receive a trip to SURTEX in May, where a panel of design experts and industry leaders will review each of the four finalist winners’ booth presentation and portfolio in order to determine the Grand Prize winner. The submissions will be judged based on the following criteria: surface design development (i.e. hand-drawn and/or computer-generated), creativity, style and use of color and pattern, potential for viability in the marketplace and presentation of overall concept and surface designs.
Congratulations to the 2016 designext finalists:
Anne Tsaprazis: University: College for Creative Studies
Anne is a Fiber Design major currently pursuing her BFA at the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, MI. Anne is a surface designer who develops prints and patterns through collage and hand rendered illustration. Concepts that fuel her work vary from contemporary culture, folklore, and creative intuition.
Carolina Perrino: University: Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD)
Carolina is currently a senior in the Fibers program at the Savannah College of Art and Design. Originally from Cincinnati, OH, Carolina begins every design with a painting then translates the work digitally into a design to share with the world.
Kera Allen: University: The University of Bolton
Kera is a 23 year old mother and student, living in the UK, in the CIty of Manchester. She is currently in her second year, studying Textile and Surface Pattern design at the University of Bolton.
Mirta Rotondo: University: Academy of Art University
Mirta was born and grew up in Rome, Italy. Following her genuine passion for design and art, at the age of 18 she founded her first advertising agency. Her early experience as an entrepreneur and as a freelancer, and her continuous involvement in technology defined her path in business and life as a Web and Graphic Designer. For both her professional and artistic life, she has been featured in magazines and press both in Italy and Internationally. In 2014 Mirta moved to San Francisco to broaden her horizon and learn new skills. She also decided to obtain a BFA in Illustration at the Academy of Art University where she’s currently enrolled in her 4th (and last) year.
The four final designs will be on display in the designext booth at SURTEX for the duration of the show slated to run May 15-17, 2016, at New York City’s Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. On Monday, May 17, one of the students will be designated by designext judges as the “grand-prize winner,” and awarded a $1,000 prize.
“Designext provides a creative platform for aspiring design students to showcase their talents and make connections among the elite of the surface design community, “said Liz Crawford, Vice President and Group Show Director. “SURTEX is proud to recognize these young, talented designers. They represent the future of the industry and reflect the vast amount of talent that exists in design schools and art programs nationally and internationally. The competition’s exceptional global talent pool offers an exciting preview of the future of surface design.”
A special thank you to our Judges for the 2016 edition of designext: Nancy Fire, Creative Director and Founder, Design Works International; Patti Carpenter, Creative Director/Development Consultant/Color + Trend Forecaster, carpenter + company; Bonnie Mackay, Creative Consultant, BMackay Consulting; Stacy Garcia, Founder and Chief Inspiration Officer, Stacy Garcia, Inc.
For more information about attending or exhibiting at SURTEX visit www.surtex.com, or contact John Erich to discuss exhibiting options at john.erich@emeraldexpo.com.
About SURTEX:
SURTEX is the annual tradeshow for the surface design industry, bringing together owners and creators of surface design (artists/designers/studios/agents/brands/licensors) with manufacturers, retailers and marketers utilizing surface design for product development needs. Since 1986, SURTEX has been the single event and global resource offering the full scope of art selling and licensing under one roof. The show, slated for May 15-17, 2016, will connect some 225 exhibitors featuring the work of over 1,000 artists and designers from around the world, with more than 2,500 attendees. For information and registration, visit www.surtex.com. SURTEX is owned and operated by Emerald Expositions, a leading operator of large business-to-business trade shows in the United States, producing more than 50 trade shows and over 100 face-to-face events in total, including conferences, summits and other events. Emerald Expositions connects more than 335,000 sellers and buyers each year and operates within the U.S. in 10 end markets (Gift, Home, General Merchandise and Manufacturing; Sports & Apparel; Design; Jewelry, Luxury & Antiques; E-Commerce; Creative Services; Licensing; Healthcare; Military; and Food).
