It is with much gratitude and admiration that we celebrate the jury alumni members of the Core77 Design Awards.
Dr. Yoko Akama is a Senior Lecturer in design in the School of Media and Communication and Research Leader of the Design Research Institute at RMIT University, Australia. Her Japanese heritage has embedded a Zen-informed reflective practice in human-centered design. Her design research practice is entangled in social 'wicked problems', to strengthen adaptive capacity for disaster resilience in Australia and Japan, and to contribute towards the efforts of Indigenous Nations enact their self-determination and governance. Trained as a communication designer, visualization features strongly in her work to catalyze meaning-making, learning and dialogue through participatory interactions. Yoko is a leader and founder of two prominent design networks – Service Design Network and Design for Social Innovation and Sustainability Lab- in Melbourne, Australia. These are fostering a community of practice among academia, business, government and community organizations to share and create knowledge on human-centered design applications.She is a recipient of British Council Design Research Award (2008); a Finalist in the Victorian Premier's Design Award (2012); and two Good Design Australia Awards (2014), which has led to invitations for collaboration and guest lectures at several national and international institutions in the UK, US, Europe and Japan.
Mark Smout and Laura Allen are Senior Lecturers at the Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL. Their work takes two routes, architectural competitions, where the particular rigor of the competition brief, site and program provide the basis for new investigations and, conceptual design projects which test out the agenda and methodology of the design research practice. They focus on the dynamic relationship between the natural and the man made and how this can be revealed to enhance the experience of the architectural landscape.
Luis is President and Founder of INSITUM, a leading innovation consulting firm. He co-founded INSITUM in 2002 and today has more than 110 employees and offices in Mexico, Brazil, Spain, Colombia, Argentina, Peru and the United States. INSITUM helps the biggest companies in the world create an innovation culture by envisioning new products, developing new services and designing better experiences. He has been involved in more than 1000 innovation projects for a wide variety of sectors. Before founding INSITUM he worked as a strategy consultant for DiamondCluster in Barcelona and E-Lab (now Sapient) in Chicago.Luis holds a bachelor's in Industrial Design and a Master's degree in Innovation Planning from the Institute of Design, IIT in Chicago. He is a prolific speaker a member of the committee for various conferences on innovation and research.
James Auger is a designer, researcher and lecturer whose work examines the social, cultural and human impact of technology and the products that exist as a result of its development and application. On graduating from Design Products (MA) at the Royal College of Art in 2001 James moved to Dublin to conduct research at Media Lab Europe (MLE) exploring the theme of human communication as mediated by technology. After MLE he worked in Tokyo as guest designer at the Miyake Design Studio developing new concepts for mobile telephones.In 2005 he returned to the RCA to teach on the Design Interactions program. During his time in DI he has been a Philips research fellow exploring the human experiential potential of smell as part of their probes program (2006-2007) and more recently completed a Ph.D (December 2012). The thesis questions the process through with emerging technologies enter everyday life using the robot as a focus for the study. James is a visiting professor at both the Haute +cole d'Art et de Design in Geneva and Musashino Art University in Tokyo. He is a partner in the speculative design practice Auger-Loizeau whose projects have been published and exhibited internationally, including MoMA, New York; 21_21, Tokyo; The Science Museum, London and Ars Electronica, Linz. Their work is in the permanent collection at MoMA. Before moving into the field of design James completed an Engineering apprenticeship at Rolls-Royce, Derby (aero engines) and worked for several years as a model-maker and special effects technician in the film industry.
Shujan (Shu) Bertrand is a spirited, forward-thinking industrial designer and business consultant driven by sustainability. She uses geometry, nature, sensory intelligence, and human-centered design concepts to create sustainable products and sustainable business approaches that embrace the simplicity of nature and inspire positive change.
Her passion for zero-waste, food, and community led her to found Aplat, a culinary design company that uses 100% organic cotton and zero-waste production practices in San Francisco, CA. Inspired by the French Art de Vivre, Aplat creates sustainably made culinary and garden totes that uplift the daily practice of sharing the good things we cook, eat, drink, and gift.
Shu is an award-winning industrial designer with 20+ years of experience. With a stellar background in soft good design, advanced concept design, product development, design research and strategy, she has influenced brands around the globe, translating her product design experience, product development, strategy, research, and insights into new product and business opportunities.
Shu Bertrand has worked internationally in Paris, Milan, and Seoul. She has led design teams and projects for studios such as Astro Studios to IDEO, and for brands such as Incase, Steelcase, Nike, Samsung, LG Electronics and Procter & Gamble. She has served on the design jury team for the 2019 IDEA Awards and the Cannes Lion Innovation Awards in France.
Today, Shu brings the foundational concepts of her circular design and manufacturing business to work for the marketplace. By paying homage to the bigger meaning of human experience and folding together the powers of collaboration and intuition, Shu helps environmentally-minded entrepreneurs and businesses create sustainable products and practices that nourish, spark, shape the future.
Creative Director, body>data>space - curator, researcher, producer, presenter, UX expert - a future thinker placing the live body at the centre of digital interaction, Ghislaine is recognised internationally since the early 90’s as a thought leader and global pioneer in full body telepresence, with deep expertise in body responsive technologies, immersive experiences and interactive interfaces.
She has conceived, directed, commissioned and produced 100s of international projects converging telepresence, motion capture, wearable computing, intelligent materials, sense/gesture tech, robotics, social medias and virtual worlds, focusing on the fluid blending of the virtual and the physical. Her long term work has been to extend natural interface techniques, passionately advocating the use of the entire body as a digital interaction canvas. She has worked extensively across the years with ICA, Dance Umbrella, FACT, National Theatre, Kinetica Art Fair and Nesta as well as major venues and festivals worldwide.
Present work includes Associate Curation of Nesta's flagship event FutureFest, the Women Shift Digital initiative with National Theatre, Research Development with IntelligentHQ and consultancies with creative industries on the body technology convergences.
She holds a Research Associateship with Middlesex University since 1999, is a Tech London Advocate, a member of the TechCityInsider100 and is a godmother to the Stemettes. She has extensive experience in chairing and presenting, having keynoted in over 30 countries on the future of virtual physical body interfaces. She regularly inputs as a thought leader on tv, radio and in the press and into governmental briefings as a key UK innovator.
Jan Boelen (¦1967, Genk) graduated as a product designer at the Media and Design Academy (KHLim), now the MAD Faculty, in Genk (B). He currently holds the position of artistic director of Z33 in Hasselt (B) and Head of the Masters Department Social Design at the Design Academy Eindhoven (NL).He is chairman of the architecture and design commission of the Flemish Community. Commissioned by the Permanent Deputation of the Province of Limburg, Jan Boelen reformed the Provincial Centre for the Visual Arts into Z33, a house for contemporary art.Since 2002, Z33 has been fashioning projects and exhibitions that encourage the visitor to look at everyday matters in a novel manner. It is a unique laboratory and a meeting place for experiment and innovation where one can discover cutting-edge exhibitions with contemporary art and design. Z33 does not have its own collection of works, but accommodates exhibition shows continuously.In his curatorial work, Jan Boelen has collaborated with Raf Simons, Studio Makkink Bey, John K÷rmeling, Thomas LommTe, Dunne & Raby, Marti QuixT, Aldo Bakker, Konstantin Grcic and Joseph Grima.In addition to the exhibitions at Z33 û House for Contemporary Art, Z33 also organizes projects in the open space, as well as projects commissioned by other organizations.At the initiative of Z33 and the Province of Limburg, Manifesta 9 took place in Belgium in 2012. In 2014 he curated the design biennial of Ljubljana in Slovenia and leaded a series of international debates on the future of design.
Melissa Bruntlett is co-founder of Modacity, a multi-service consultancy, focused on inspiring healthier, happier, simpler forms of urban mobility through words, photography and film. She is a regular contributor for Momentum Magazine, The Vancouver Courier, Vanity Buzz and most recently Grist. Melissa is very active in her community, advocating for walking, cycling and public transportation improvements, and works as producer and project manager for Modacity's film campaigns. Her most recent work includes developing a marketing campaign for a Transit Referendum in the Metro Vancouver area. She lives in Vancouver, BC with her husband and two children, and makes riding a bicycle or walking throughout her beautiful city a daily activity.Follow her on Twitter at@mbruntlett.
Max Burton, the founder of Matter, is a product and interaction designer with over 2 decades of experiences. From housewares to digitally enabled products, he is inspired by participating in the creation of the future that melds technology with art and humanity.Prior to forming MatterÖ, Max worked as the Global Executive Creative Director for Product Design at frog, the Creative Director of Nike's Tech Lab and the VP of Design at Smart in New York. His work has been exhibited at the MoMa in New York, the Design museum in London and the Chicago Athenaeum.
Paul Cocksedge studied under Ron Arad during his MA in Product Design at the Royal College of Art, and was introduced to Issey Miyake and Ingo Maurer, both of whom staged early exhibitions of his work. Maurer went so far as to give Paul a show within his own show at Milan Design Week 2003, introducing his lights 'Styrene', 'NeON' and an early work that was to be developed into 'Life 01' with FLOS. Paul has since gone on to become one of Britain's leading designers, founding Paul Cocksedge Studio with business partner Joana Pinho in 2004. The Studio's catalogue includes an imaginative range of design products, architectural projects, sculptures and lighting, all infused with the sense of simplicity, joy and wonder that has come to characterise Paul Cocksedge's work.
Rob started out in California working on Porsche and BMW race cars. Not far away, Dr. Paul MacCready built the Gossamer Condor, a pedal powered aircraft. Rob become fascinated with the technology and built a 60 mph pedal powered trike. Highway speeds at fractional horsepower became an obsession. Rob became VP of the International Human Powered Vehicle Association and directed the first solar car race in the US. With support from GE and DuPont to develop composite and thermoforming technologies, Rob built or contributed to numerous innovative vehicles. He also served as an advisor to Gov. Jerry Brown, a Creative Director and a documentary producer. He worked with Anita Roddick, CEO of The Body Shop launching environmental and human rights campaigns. After consulting on Bike Sharing technology for NYC, it became apparent there was now a viable market for an ultra-efficient vehicle that was between a bicycle and a car.
Martha is a Partner at gravitytank and has led the Research Discipline since the spring of 2008 when she joined the firm. She began her career at eLab in 1990s, and since then has worked across a wide variety of industries plying her skills as an applied ethnographer and business consultant. Stints include leadership roles at Sapient, Hall & Partners, and HLB. Clients are numerous and range from General Mills to General Motors; from SCJ to J&J; from Fidelity (Investments) to Security (U.S. Department of).Martha holds a BA in English from Indiana University and an MA in Performance Studies from Northwestern University. She is currently adjunct faculty at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management and the McCormick School of Engineering. Martha is former co-chair and current Advisory Committee member of the Ethnographic Praxis in Industry Conference (EPIC). She is also a contributing author in The Handbook of Anthropology and Business (Left Coast Press, May 2014).
British illustrator and author Marion Deuchars works with major design and advertising agencies, publishes illustrated children's books and has created a globally recognized style of hand-lettering. Whether it's client work for the likes of The Royal Mail and The Imperial War Museum, or inspiring youngsters with her Let's Make Great Art books, Marion's impact on the creative scene continues to be wide-ranging. She is a member of the Alliance Graphique Internationale and represented the UK at Helsinki's World Design Capital celebrations.Her latest book, Draw Paint Print like the Great Artists, was published by Laurence King in Autumn 2014.
Carla Echevarria is an award-winning creative director with a design background and a decade of experience in digital product development and advertising.She leads the creative team at MakerBot, overseeing user experience design, visual design and copywriting. Her team is responsible for how users experience MakerBot across all channels: brand identity, website and digital properties, online and print advertising, social media, events, promotions, packaging design, print collateral, MakerBot Retail Stores, and third-party retail. Before joining MakerBot, Carla led creative teams at the Facebook Creative Shop, Google Creative Lab and R/GA.She is also on the faculty of the undergraduate Graphic Design and Advertising department of the School of Visual Arts.Her work has won awards at the Cannes Lions, One Show, D&AD, Art Director's Club and the Webbys, and has been published in the AIGA Design 365, Creativity Review, Creativity Magazine and Communication Arts. She has spoken at various industry events, including SXSW Interactive, AIGA events and the FindSpark Creative Conference. She also serves on the board of directors for the New York chapter of the AIGA.
Darrell Etherington is a writer at Techcrunch.
Hugh Evans is an entrepreneur and business designer with a focus on large scale enterprise transformation and using design practice in a business context. Since his first venture in 2002 he has founded and led the development of a business portfolio that has guided major transformation investments for organizations across 5 continents, generating more than US$100M in service revenues. Currently Hugh leads FromHereOn (www.fromhereon.com), which is an Enterprise Design firm focused on customer-led strategy, service transformation and redesigning how businesses operate. FromHereOn works with multinational organizations from offices in London and New York.