Van Cleef & Arpels and Tashkeel in partnership with Design Days Dubai are inviting emerging designers based in the GCC region to submit design proposals for The Middle East Emergent Designer Prize 2017. The theme for this fifth edition of the prize is “Growth”, which can be interpreted as physical and intellectual growth, personal or professional growth or growth of the community.
Participants should submit proposals for contemporary functional products, including furniture or lighting that reflect growth related to the aesthetics of their culture, expressing their attitudes towards education and aspirations to grow while serving the practical needs of our contemporary society. Finalists will be selected on the basis of their creativity, innovation and aesthetics.
Designers are free to use any materials keeping in mind the budget provided and the time frame for production. The call is open only for unrealised projects, and does not include jewellery or watches. Application forms are available online at the Tashkeel website under ‘projects’, and participants can e-mail digital files with photographs, maquettes, renderings and sketches, along with explanatory notes about the design and materials to be used to submission@tashkeel.org by January 15, 2017. Finalists will be announced at Design Days Dubai in March 2017, and get the opportunity to showcase their work in November 2017.
The winner will receive a budget of Dh30,000 to produce a refined prototype to be unveiled in November 2017, and a five-day trip to Paris to attend courses led by the acclaimed Mains d’Or, master craftsmen in high jewellery creation, at the exclusive L’Ecole Van Cleef & Arpels, an institute dedicated to accentuating the methods behind the world of jewellery creation and watchmaking. Ten finalists will be announced at Design Days Dubai 2017, and will also be granted Dh2,000 to showcase 3D prints of their work in November 2017; three semi-finalists will each receive Dh10,000 to produce mock-ups to be exhibited in November 2017 and the winner will receive an additional Dh20,000 to realise their product.
Jyoti Kalsi is an arts-enthusiast based in Dubai.
