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Danube’s initiative to promote young talent paved way for the best interior designers.
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| 3 Jun 2012 |
Danube, the leading construction, building materials and home interiors company in partnership with the Association of Professional Interior Designers (APID), announced the winners of Danube Students Interior Design Awards 2012 at a gala ceremony held at Grand Hyatt, Dubai.
The event was graced by H.E. Humaid Mohammed Obeid Al Qattami, UAE Minister of Education, who presented the awards to the winners. He stated the importance of interior design in the industry encouraging students to strive for excellence in their approach. The event also marked the esteemed presence of Ms.Zarine Khan, Bollywood’s favorite Interior Decorator.
The Danube-APID Student Interior Design Competition was developed as an adjunct to typical course work, where students could utilize skills learned through their current academic development, in the design of an interior environment with far-reaching appeal. The registration process started in March 2012 inviting post-secondary students from GCC to apply for the competition.
“Interior Design in the Middle East is developing at a rapid pace. Launching the competition was part of a move to help boost the region's interior design industry and also to discover the talent of emerging interior designers”, said Mr.Rizwan Sajan, Founder & Chairman of Danube Group. “We would like to congratulate the winners of the competition who truly exceeded our expectations in terms of design, concept and creativity. The success and the overwhelming response for this competition has given us the assurance to lay the groundwork for a more exciting and activity-filled second edition of the competition itself. We hope that the competition will inspire more designers to come up with engaging and creative designs that best exemplify the talent and beauty of the region”, he added.
Proleads, the leading business intelligence and research firm stated in a report that the interior design segment in UAE would grow to USD 22.5 billion in 2011.* In line with the statistics, the Middle East experienced an increased demand for interior designers. The need for young talent has always been felt, but never recognized. Danube’s initiative to partner with APID served as a catalyst to promote and discover regional talent in interior design industry.
“The alliance between Danube and APID is testament to the significant role played by the region’s interior design industry, which is considered to be one of the fastest growing commercial activities in the UAE”, said Ms.Farida Kamber Al Awadhi, President of APID. “The overall quality of the submissions was of a high standard. The entrants demonstrated a holistic approach to sustainable design that communicates a forward-thinking approach. Each submission bought a unique solution to the ever-evolving concept of interior designing. The competition focused on the significant role that interior design plays in our lives and most importantly discovered and promoted the upcoming talent in the region,” added Ms.Farida Kamber Al Awadhi, President of APID.
The distinguished panel of judges for the competition comprised of Ms.Faten Alsarraf, Managing Director at Final Fix Interiors, Ms.Indu Varanasi, Managing Director at IR Design and Mr.Erick Casidsid, Design Manager at Gemaco Interiors. The designs were evaluated on aspects such as functionality, presentation, innovation and usability.
Having established its presence in the region’s interior design industry, Danube’s main focus was to promote innovation and creativity of the budding designers that could become trends of tomorrow. The inaugural competition awarded 12 winners with total prize money of AED 85,000.
The winners of the competition were chosen from over 280 entries submitted in the two categories. The grand winning entry was rewarded with a cash prize of AED 20,000 and the winners in the CEO’s category were awarded with a prize of AED 5,000.
Members of the group Ad.Infinitum, the grand winners of the competition, expressed their excitement on winning the award, “We are thrilled to have won such a prestigious competition. Thank you so much for this great honor. It’s a chance of a lifetime and we feel incredibly fortunate of having excelled in a competition like this.”
In addition to the grand winning entry and an honourable mention from the CEO, the competition recognized five winners in each category with special merit awards. Danube congratulates all the winners for their exceptional designs.
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