WIN Awards Interior Practice of the Year 2015 – Judges’ Comments
We’ve been delighted with the response to our new Interior Practice of the Year Awards, receiving over 100 entries to the Interior Practice of the Year and Emerging Interior Practice of the Year categories.
With such a high standard evident across all entries, the judging session was tougher than ever but after careful deliberation and in-depth consideration, our jury was able to reach a final verdict on the shortlist. Congratulations to each of the shortlisted interior practices, you have made the launch of these new awards an inspiration with outstanding work from across the globe.
The winners will be announced at our Awards Ceremony at the Sky Garden, London on 02 December. We’ll be celebrating the outstanding achievements of this year’s shortlisted entries, enjoying a glass or two of Prosecco, delicious canapés and wine surrounded by the most spectacular views of London.
BUY YOUR TICKETS HERE: http://backstage.worldarchitecturenews.com/worldinteriorsnews/buy-your-ticket
For more information about tickets or the event email steven.penney@worldinteriorsnews.com or robert.stuart@worldinteriorsnews.com. Alternatively, call Steven or Robert on +44 (0) 1273 201117 to reserve your place at what promises to be the defining event in the design calendar.
INTERIOR PRACTICE OF THE YEAR AWARD 2015
‘The practices we have shortlisted have all shown enormous care in the presentation of their projects, which undoubtedly affects the judges’ reaction. A lot of well-detailed, well conceptualised projects that are authentic to the genius loci of the location’.– Matthew Kobylar – Director of Interiors & Workplace Strategy, Arney Fender Katsalidis
The introduction of the Interior Practice of the Year Awards has been a great success. Entries flooded in from 20 countries including Mexico, Thailand, Norway and South Africa all showing impressive portfolios of cutting-edge design. We saw an international airport in Baku, Azerbaijan, a tea shop in London, an artist’s workspace in Amsterdam and a 520 room hotel in Chicago.
The judging panel consisted of leading industry experts: Merit Claussen – Associate Director, Eric Parry Architects, Matthew Kobylar – Director of Interiors & Workplace Strategy, Arney Fender Katsalidis, Bill Amberg – Creative Director, Bill Amberg Studio and Guzmán de Yarza Blache – Master Director in Design for Work, Retail and Learning Environments, IE School of Architecture and Design who participated remotely.
Snøhetta – Oslo, Norway
Snøhetta began as a collaborative architecture and landscape workshop, and has remained true to its trans-disciplinary way of thinking since its inception in 1989. Today, Snøhetta has grown to become an internationally renowned practice of architecture, landscape, interior architecture and brand design with more than 180 employees.
‘Snøhetta’s work shows a lovely use of materials. Very clean execution and very carefully planned out architecturally with good interior details and a fresh approach to each project. They justly deserve their reputation as a company that creates unique interiors that are both well-conceived and beautifully executed’ MK
i29 Interior Architects – Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Founded by Jasper Jansen and Jeroen Dellensen in 2003, i29 produce a wide variety of award winning projects ranging residential, commercial, retail, education and exhibition sectors. They believe in simplicity as well as surprise. Simplicity means they are very selective and push each choice to the limit. This results in clear and structured spaces, with a transparent yet energetic image. i29 stands for a work ethic that leads to design solutions dependent neither on expensive materials nor on technical show.
‘i29’s submission demonstrates a great use of colour, innovative architectural use of space and consideration for the existing spaces. They achieve unique architecture solutions, both in terms of the building and detailing’. BA
Studiofibre – Berkhamsted, UK
Studiofibre’s clients extend throughout many disciplines creating spaces on multiple levels. With design solutions ranging from Chic (Net-A-Porter) to Crafted (notonthehighstreet.com) to Cutting-Edge (Farfetch), Studiofibre understands the needs of the 21st century brands and their extraordinary growth.
‘Studiofibre’s projects demonstrate a unique vision for each space, which combines the work aspects of the environment their clients operate in – I have visited the Net-A-Porter offices and they are simply stunning and totally appropriate for the fashion industry’. BA
‘Clever furniture and detailing’. BA
Design by Richard Lindvall – Stockholm, Sweden
Richard Lindvall is a Stockholm based designer predominantly working with interior design and concept direction, but also within a number of creative fields such as photography, publication and graphic design.
Striving to always make his projects completely unique, Richard also designs furniture and décor that is incorporated into each of his interior projects.
‘I like his work and his treatment of materials – he has an exceptional sense of colour and composition and given the low budget nature of his projects I think he has created spaces and rooms that are truly unique and could compete with other restaurants that have a much higher budget’. MC
Autoban – Istanbul, Turkey
Established in Istanbul in 2003, Autoban is an international architectural and design practice with expertise across sectors and scales. Autoban has built a portfolio that includes transportation, hospitality, residential and commercial developments.
‘Autoban has a very diverse portfolio, going from an airport in Azerbaijan to restaurants in Istanbul, Turkey and Soho, London. I find their treatment of materials exceptional, it demonstrates a highly skilled attitude to design’. MC
‘Most of all, I admire their use of light and shadow and how they create depth in spaces’. MC
David Kohn Architects – London, UK
DKA is an architectural practice based in London that specialises in interiors that have ranged from apartments to arts venues, from white cubes to galleries to landmark pavilions. The practice is committed to the social relevance of design, craftsmanship in construction and broadening the impact each project has on its wider surroundings.
‘This one was really nice from the bold and inventive use of colour; it’s good to see a practice being so imaginative and their use of space in these very small projects. The projects where the colour doesn’t really matter too much you can still appreciate the spaces by volume. I did like the projects like Sanderson House where there is a blend of inside-outside, with a splash of colour augmenting that. There are some bold concepts, for example the Barcelona flat, Carrer Avinyó, where the tiled floor translates from red to green’. MK
‘Designed from the ground up – Good architectural solutions’. BA
Make – London, UK and Beijing, China
Over the last 11 years, Make has delivered fully integrated interiors for many of their buildings. They now have a growing interiors team and a portfolio of interiors projects encompassing virtually every sector – including both autonomous interiors projects and collaborations with other architectural practices.
‘Our work is inspired by a singular purpose: to design the best buildings, places and spaces in the world’ Ken Shuttleworth – Director and Founding Partner
‘Make is a more mature practice and the leather detailing in the projects they have done is really beautiful. You can see an attention and care in the details, and how everything comes together’. MK
‘There is a wide variety of work, which is really good, and their projects are extremely well executed’. MK
Landini Associates – Sydney, Australia
Established in 1993 by Mark and Rikki Landini, Landini Associates is a multi-disciplinary design and brand consultancy consisting of 25 strategic planners, architects, interior, graphic and product designers. ‘Our desire is to do world class, simple yet effective work that lasts’
‘Many of their projects are very inspiring to me; especially their T2 store in Shoreditch, London. Having been in there I love the use of the understated, the way the space kind of melts away so the product is what you see, and knowing that they also designed the packaging means they have succeeded in creating an entire environment. The architecture appears unassuming, but actually there is a lot of detail when you are in the space’. MK
There is a nice variety of work, they can do light and bright as they have proved with the Sass & Bride project in Sydney, Australia with the white walls and shelving and the emphasis on the jeans. They don’t have a house style as such, the products are determining the outcome.’ MK
‘Excellent variety of projects and execution’ BA
Meyer Davis Studio – New York, USA
Meyer Davis Studio is a globally recognized design boutique specialising in residential, hospitality, retail and workspace projects. Founded in 1999 by Will Meyer and Gray Davis, the firm has established itself at the forefront of the world’s high end residential and commercial design practices.
‘Meyer Davis’s work was inspiring to us in its inventiveness with three different hotels showing a very different aesthetic and style. What we did like is that they are creating a new vocabulary; all the hotels look distinctive with a rich creative environment without resorting on some of the gimmicky things that we see in a lot of interior architecture today’. MK
Johnson Naylor – London, UK
Johnson Naylor is an interior architecture and design practice founded in 1990 by Brian Johnson and Fiona Naylor and now employing over 30 professional design staff from a range of disciplines.
Johnson Naylor has developed a reputation for delivering inventive, contextual and elegant design. Working from first principles, their approach is collaborative, rational and open.
A sophisticated and mature practice that covers an enormous range of projects, from simple single buildings to highly complex public spaces. Johnson Naylor integrate interior and exterior beautifully, which also shows in the considered use of materials for their projects. You can see the way sketches are developed all the way through to design detailing and the production of the space’. BA
