Lexus Design Award 2021: Leading Lights of Global Design Selected As Judges and Mentors

Lexus today announced its complete high-powered lineup of judges and mentors for the Lexus Design Award 2021, a global platform to support and nurture the next generation of creators.

Lexus is delighted to welcome two more design celebrities to the 2021 judging panel: leading young Chinese architect Dong Gong and Greg Lynn a highly influential American architect and CEO of Piaggio Fast Forward a robotics company.

Dong, who recently became a member of the French Academy of Architecture, has earned international acclaim for his creative works, including the well-known Seashore Library in China. Lynn is internationally recognized for using technology to reimagine the relationship of architecture and design with society. His wide-ranging works bring various interdisciplinary fields into an interconnected space where he can harness technology to experiment and innovate.

They join the panel’s returning judges: the esteemed design influencer Paola Antonelli, senior curator in the Department of Architecture and Design of New York’s MoMA, and Simon Humphries who heads Toyota & Lexus Global Design.

Using Lexus’ three key design principles, Anticipate, Innovate and Captivate as judging criteria, the judging panel will seek to identify next generation talent as they evaluate the entries based on how well they employ these principles to build a Better Tomorrow.

Joining as a judge for Lexus Design Award for the first time,  Dong Gong commented, “I think the most exciting thing to be a juror will be I have the chance to see designs by young designers and especially not only limited to architecture field but also includes all the other areas of the design, it’s about a process of engagement and interaction.”

Greg Lynn added, “I am happy to join the jury for the Lexus Design Award as I am certain to learn a great deal from the vision and values of the participants, from the insight of the mentors, and from the perspectives of the other members of the jury. I have followed the award in the past and am impressed by the ability to connect design with cultural challenges. It is exciting to be involved with a program dedicated to discovering, mentoring and awarding talented young designers who focus on tomorrow. Now more than ever, there are so many challenges for design to address including social inequity, economic instability, climate crisis and a health pandemic so I am sure to be inspired. This will be a case where the pleasure will be all mine.”

Finalists receive a priceless experience as the mentors provide direct, interactive guidance in developing prototypes that bring the mentees’ ideas to life for the final judging. This year’s newest mentor is the artist and designer Sputniko!, whose innovative video and multimedia installations address technology’s impact on society. She joins the team of Joe Doucet, Mariam Kamara and Sabine Marcelis who will mentor the six finalists chosen from worldwide entries.

The prototypes of the six finalists’ ideas will be displayed at the finale of Lexus Design Award 2021, scheduled to be held in April 2021. A single Grand Prix winner will be selected after finalists present their prototypes and ideas to the judging panel at the event under the eyes of global media and guests.

Entries for the Lexus Design Award 2021 will be accepted until October 11.

For more information on Lexus Design Award 2021, please visit: https://discoverlexus.com/highlights/entries-open-for-lexus-design-award-2021

Official Hashtag: #LexusDesignAward

CALL FOR ENTRIES TO THE LEXUS DESIGN AWARD 2021 COMPETITION (see related image)

ABOUT LEXUS DESIGN AWARD

First launched in 2013, the Lexus Design Award is an international design competition that targets up-and-coming creators from around the world. The award seeks to foster the growth of ideas that contribute to society by supporting designers and creators whose works can help to shape a better future. It provides a unique opportunity for each finalist to work with a globally recognized designer as a mentor to create prototypes of their designs, and then exhibit them at one of the design calendar’s most important events.

#LexusDesignAward

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