Monday, 9 February 2009

Design Awards

I had been pondering the prospect of entering some design competitions in preparation for my portfolio at year end for entry into the 2nd year of architecture when lo and behold while flicking through a magazine I discovered a competition for furniture and home objects.

Without delay (closing date is 2 days away) I sent away my entry

Here's what I included by way of a brief:

About the furniture:

This hall table was inspired by the architectural and design work of Charles Rennie Mackintosh. Like Macintosh I was also influenced by Japanese design and the Chinese principals of Feng Shui.

In the Japanese arts furniture and design focused on the quality of the space, which was meant to evoke a calming and organic feeling to the interior. The hall table has been created with these qualities in mind.

It is crafted from Jarrah and has routed squares of Tawa inserted. The glass top is etched with squares and is a half moon shape – symbolising the ebb and flow of life. Metal elements have also been incorporated in the design. Metal is an element used by many practitioners of Feng Shui to pull energy together. It is believed to stimulate the brain's intellectual abilities while bringing the energy of the room together. Increasing the metal energies of a room will allow one to focus one's thoughts.

Like Mackintosh’s work the hall table employs a simple and solid massed form with little ornamentation, yet it exudes light and space, and the use of colour and decoration is carefully conceived using natural forms and materials.

About the designer:

Cassandra Gaisford
Cassandra is an architect, artist, stylist and author. She has an intense passion for art in all its guises. She believes in the power of creativity to transform people’s lives, making them feel refreshed, playful, inspired and adventurous.

As fellow artist Paul Klee says – "one eye sees and the other feels" Cassandra’s creative collections are echoes of our culture when we are at our most happiest. Sometimes all it takes is one sensual piece of furniture, one evocative image or one sensual painting to evoke a radical reinvention of one’s life.

Handcrafted in Aotearoa, New Zealand Cassandra’s pieces all embody the essence of her beliefs and speak to her soul mission: to live life to the fullest, to take risks, to be playful, to create beauty and to always have fun and to help others achieve the same.

Visit Cassandra’s website to learn more about who she is and what she creates

www.cassandragaisford.com

You can learn more about these awards here

The winning entries and a selection of the finalists in the April/May 2009 issue of HOME New Zealand magazine.

Labels: architecture