It is with much gratitude and admiration that we celebrate the jury alumni members of the Core77 Design Awards.
Scott is someone who throws around words like design, product, and strategy, but ultimately just likes working with interesting colleagues on exciting software products for people who need them. In recent years, he has led design at Capitol AI, a startup aiming to modernize and simplify data storytelling, and Azavea, a geospatial software shop committed to civic, social, and environmental good. Some time ago, he designed & stewarded the local search experience on Google Maps for about 4 years. And threaded throughout his career are sundry adventures in design & strategy for startups known & unknown. He lives in Philadelphia and is desperate to tell fewer dad jokes.
Cara Kim is a multidisciplinary creative based in New York City with 11 years of experience coming from the automotive industry. Born in South Korea and raised in Detroit, she studied automotive design at College for Creative Studies. Her experience includes working with companies like Audi, GM, Faraday Future, and Autodesk. Having pivoted to automotive interior design from exterior design early in her career, she values a holistic approach in mobility product design. She is excited to partake in the competition as a jury member to see the fresh perspectives of next generation designers and discuss design with the jury team. Despite her career background as a car designer, she does not own a car but relies on subway trains and her motorcycle at the moment.
Craig Metros is an accomplished automotive designer with more than 35 years of experience. He began his career at Ford Motor Company in 1985 and throughout his tenure, he led the design and development of multiple car and truck programs in countries around the globe. In 2014, Metros was appointed Design Director of North America where he oversaw the design and styling of all North American vehicles including the Mustang, F-Series trucks, the Ford GT race car, and the rebirth of the Bronco.
Since retiring from Ford Design in 2020, Metros has taught Transportation Design at the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, Michigan, and sits on CCS’ Alumni Board. He frequently serves as a design patent consultant and design expert witness and creates mixed-medium art influenced by motorsports, hot rods, and NASA.
Christine Gaspar is a designer and planner with over fifteen years of experience in community-engaged design practice. She was the Executive Director of the Center for Urban Pedagogy (CUP) from 2009 to 2022. CUP is a New York-based nonprofit whose mission is to use the power of design and art to increase meaningful civic engagement in partnership with historically marginalized communities. Prior to that, she was Assistant Director of the Gulf Coast Community Design Studio in Biloxi, Mississippi, where she provided architectural design and community planning services to low-income communities of color recovering from Hurricane Katrina. She is a founding member of the Design Futures Student Leadership Forum Advisory Board, and holds Masters in Architecture and in Urban Planning from MIT, and Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies from Brown University. Her work is driven by a belief that design can be a powerful tool, particularly when it’s used to support community-led visions for change.
Morgan Hutchinson, MD is the Assistant Medical Director of the Thomas Jefferson University Hospital Emergency Department, Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine and Director of Education for the Jefferson Health Design Lab where she directs the first curricular design thinking program in a US medical school. She is a creator, educator, international speaker, clinical leader and advisor working at the intersection of human-centered design, medical education and clinical quality improvement. Her work has been highlighted by the New York Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia Business Journal, Pennsylvania Medical Society and others.
Morgan is passionate about applying human-centered design to reimagining healthcare. Morgan’s created Jefferson’s COVID-19 Mobile Unit to increase access to testing and vaccines in Philadelphia’s vulnerable communities, and has advised on multiple mobile health programs focusing on primary care, women's health and cancer prevention. She has led multiple initiatives to expand clinical spaces to boost surge capacity; leverage 3D-print technology to meet supply chain shortages, and reimagine healthcare services. She has advised and partnered with diverse teams across industries to find creative, collaborative solutions to challenges in service design, health equity and medical education.
I am an independent industrial design consultant committed to bringing coherent vision and expert delivery to the development of hardware in connected and analogue spaces.
Across different product scales, I’ve helped ambitious tech start-ups and some of the world's most prestigious brands, informing and elevating their business with robust strategic thinking and industrial craft.
Notable outputs include high-profile civic projects such as the London Olympic Torch and the Elizabeth Line Train interior. I’ve explored future autonomous vehicle experiences with Honda, luxury consumer products with Axor Hansgrohe, and the world’s first fully integrated quantum computing system for scientific and commercial use - IBM Quantum System One.
Most recently with Sky, I led the development of their core hardware proposition, culminating in the delivery of the Sky Glass streaming TV platform in 2021.
James is an end-to-end problem solver, ultimately bringing products and experiences to market that connect emotionally with people and have real, lasting meaning. He focuses on gaining empathy for the end-user and is happiest when developing products with beautiful aesthetics that are just right for their place in the world. James has more than 15 years of experience designing in the consumer and enterprise electronics, CPG and healthcare industries. Currently, James is helping make the revolutionary real at Aruliden. Prior to Aruliden, James was disrupting the world of oral care as the director of Industrial Design and packaging at quip. These days, his passion is leading and empowering teams of designers to do the best work of their lives.
Nishita Gill is the founder of Treemouse, an award-winning strategic consultancy that applies design-led problem-solving techniques to uncharted areas. Over a decade, they’ve been fundamental in scaling design to areas like building systems that help people feel comfortable about seeking treatment for virulent diseases like tuberculosis and hepatitis C, building product feature sets that increase acceptance of digital applications, and enhancing ways to build more resilient and people-centric public systems that reach 1.3bn people in India.
Nishita is passionate about adapting niche concepts and novel approaches for mass adoption and frequently advises startups on building feature-sets that scale. She lives in London and is always searching for the next best flavor of tea.
Dian Holton is a senior deputy art director at AARP where she oversees creative for TheGirlfriend.com, Sistersletter.com and The Ethel. She routinely contributes art direction and design to AARP The Magazine and specifically cover stories and entertainment related. Her background includes book design, branding, retail installation, styling and footwear design. Her passions include education, philanthropy, fashion and pop culture.
Krystina Castella has practiced as an industrial designer, consultant, and is a Professor at Art Center College of Design. Her work centers around designing for play, the intersection between design and ethical business, sustainable materials and manufacturing and entrepreneurship. She is founder of the Design Entrepreneur Network (DEN) a consulting group specializing in design strategy where she has assisted over 500+ start-ups, social enterprises, and organizations since 2004.
She is also author of 12 books including award-winning cookbooks, children’s books, and a textbook Designing for Kids: Creating for playing, learning, and growing. She is a contributor to National Public Radio.
Krystina worked in-house as a designer for Walt Disney Imagineering, FOX Children’s Network, Generra Sportwear, RTKL, and the Brooklyn Children’s Museum. She founded several licensing and manufacturing companies that internationally distributed products she designed, including furniture, toys, clothing, stationery, housewares, and soft goods. The Museum of Modern Art, Fortune Magazine and Oprah Winfrey have all praised Krystina’s creative achievements.
Nootan Bharani is a fierce champion of the continuum of communities and a thoughtful leader of processes to shape places where people want to be. An architect with a deep background in environmental sustainability, Nootan has a propensity toward existing buildings and in-between spaces, and has spent most of her career in non-traditional practice, working directly with neighborhood partners on projects at a wide variety of scales. Nootan is currently the Associate Director of Design and University Partnerships at Arts + Public Life, and a lecturer in the Humanities Division, at the University of Chicago. Previously, Nootan was Lead Design Manager for Place Lab at the University of Chicago where she was thought and practice leader for building projects. Prior to coming to the University of Chicago, she was Managing Director for CB&I Sustainable Design Solutions of Illinois. Nootan is also a volunteer in Chicago Public Schools where her children attend, co-leading initiatives for caregivers of students with disabilities.
A veteran industrial designer, Li Qing has over 15 years of experience in product development, spanning design research to concept development and production. She has honed her expertise in varied industries, from consumer electronics to medical equipment.
She spent the past 8 years working at ASUS Design Center in Singapore, probing the future and exploring next-generation computing and gaming experiences. Li Qing’s work centers around the ROG Gaming series, where she is focused on bringing innovative ideas and unexpected design solutions to the table to develop new creative visions that chart the path forward for her team.
NickyChulo (Nicholas Fulcher) is an Art Director & Designer from Northern Virginia who currently resides in Los Angeles, California. Learning how to draw at an early age, Nicholas was drawn to graffiti, comic books, and video games. He continued to harness his combined love of art & design and attended numerous design classes in high school. Teachers quickly began to take notice and started to encourage his growth which helped cultivate his passion for visual communication. In 2010, Nicholas began freelancing in Washington D.C. and his primary focus was album art and apparel design. From 2013-2014 he attended Savannah College of Art & Design (Atlanta) studying towards his BFA in Graphic Design. After studying a few years, honing his craft, Nicholas made the move to New York City where he actualized his passion by becoming an Art Director at Atlantic records. He has carefully navigated his way through the industry and has grown into one of the most sought out visual artists.
An Industrial Designer based in Singapore, Alvin has over 18 years of experience crafting designs with small to multinational companies. His adaptability over the years has enabled his design experience to span across different and diverse design disciplines from industrial, packaging, and brand to CMF, producing multi-award-winning designs.
When he was a brand consultant, he successfully helped rebrand, strategize, and improve brand equity for various companies in different industries. Prior to joining Bang & Olufsen, Alvin worked with other companies such as Philips and has collaborated with various automotive and lifestyle brands such as Aston Martin, Sony, and Balenciaga.
He continuously strives to stimulate creative thinking, with unique and strategic ideas and solutions, applying them to his work to create inspiring and human-centric designs, focusing on emotive and experiential touch points.
Jessica Covi is an Austrian-born industrial designer who specializes in experiential and holistic product design. After her master's studies at the University of Applied Arts, Vienna, and working in Zurich, Switzerland, Jess moved to New York City to work as an industrial designer at the design firm, frog design. Before joining BMW Group she worked as a design consultant and creative director, with clients such as Google, Hyundai, Unilever, and Anheuser Bush inBev across industries including hospitality, architecture, consumer goods and retail.
Before joining BMW Group she worked as a design consultant and creative director, with clients such as Google, Hyundai, Unilever and Anheuser Bush inBev across industries including hospitality, architecture, consumer goods and retail. She provides creative vision and leadership for multidisciplinary teams creating innovative products and experiences at the junction of design, culture, and product realization.