May 22, 2018
ArtCenter Designers Dominate ICFF Studio 2018 Competition at New York Design Week
Showcase of the best emerging talent is key career catalyst
Eight ArtCenter educated designers, six current students and two recent graduates, were named 2018 ICFF Studio Finalists, the most prestigious competition in the design industry. Their contemporary furniture and fixture designs were selected among hundreds of submissions from around the world to be featured in the ICFF Studio 2018 class of 11 emerging designers at the annual showcase for design in New York.
The following designs were chosen by a prominent panel of judges for the ICFF Studio 2018 to represent the next generation of top design talent:
“Lavida” chair created by Chenchen Fan, Product Design student
“Nostalgia” created by Yelling Guo, Environmental Design student
“Snug” created by Nupur Haridas, graduate Environmental Design student
“Froz” designed by Huan Pei, graduate Environmental Design alumnus
“Fog Table” created by Haeun Kim, Product Design student
“Mokum” and “Creative Exploration” designed by Kelly Kim Product Design student
“Sensi” chair created by Sasipat Leelachart, Environmental Design student
“Black Kaleidoscope” designed by Jialun Xiong, graduate Environmental Design alumnus
Winners of the juried ICFF Studio competition are officially recognized as the next generation of emerging talent within the contemporary design industry. Approximately 36,000 movers and shakers in the field gather in May each year for ICFF at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York during New York Design Week.
Finalists are presented at ICFF in their own individual booths under the ICFF Studio umbrella. The exposure is a valuable opportunity for Studio finalists to introduce their work to the design world and begin to build their future. The recognition offers tremendous potential for ICFF Studio winners to launch their career by presenting their designs to some of the world’s top designers and architects. One example is ICFF Studio star alumnus Nolen Niu, who is also an ArtCenter alumnus. Niu launched his idea into the market at ICFF, then started his own business in Los Angeles.
To enter the competition, a designer must be working in the industry for less than five years and have a working prototype that is not in commercial production. All submissions are reviewed by established industry professionals with entries judged on design aesthetics, the ability to be economically mass produced, marketability and commercial viability.
ICFF Studio is presented by ICFF and Bernhardt Design. Bernhardt Design is a leading designer and manufacturer of contemporary furniture for the home, office and hospitality space for over 127 years.
Numerous publications have featured the work presented at ICFF Studio, including Business Week, Fast Company, Interior Design, Metropolis, The New York Times, Surface, and Wallpaper.
Since its inception, some 2,000 emerging designers have participated in ICFF Studio and many are now important contributors in the interior design marketplace.
