Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum today announces the winners of the 2018 National Design Awards, recognizing design excellence and innovation in 10 categories.
Now in their 19th year, the annual awards promote design as a vital humanistic tool in shaping the world and are accompanied by robust educational programs in cities nationwide. The award recipients will be honored at a gala dinner and ceremony Thursday, Oct. 18, in the Arthur Ross Terrace and Garden at Cooper Hewitt.
An interdisciplinary jury of design leaders and educators selected the winners after reviewing award submissions resulting from nominations submitted by design experts and enthusiasts. Nominees must have been practicing professionally for a minimum of seven years; Lifetime Achievement nominees must have been practicing professionally for a minimum of 20 years. Winners are selected based on the level of excellence, innovation and public impact of their body of work.
« All ten of this year’s winners present a powerful design perspective and body of work that is at once inclusive and deeply personal, accompanied by great achievement, humanity and social impact, » said Caroline Baumann, director of Cooper Hewitt. « I am excited to share our winners with the world at large as we chart an ambitious path for our most prominent educational initiative that further elevates Cooper Hewitt as a national platform for design. These inspiring men and women will be joining us in classrooms and communities throughout the U.S. to help us raise awareness of the power of design to improve our lives. »
This year’s recipients are:
Gail Anderson, Lifetime Achievement;
Anne Whiston Spirn, Design Mind;
Design for America, Corporate & Institutional Achievement;
WEISS/MANFREDI, Architecture Design;
Civilization, Communication Design;
Christina Kim, Fashion Design;
Neri Oxman, Interaction Design;
Oppenheim Architecture + Design, Interior Design;
Mikyoung Kim Design, Landscape Architecture;
Blu Dot, Product Design.
Established in 2000 as a project of the White House Millennium Council, the National Design Awards are accompanied annually by National Design Week, which takes place this year Oct. 13–21. A variety of public education programs will be offered at the museum as well as across the country, including special events, panel discussions and workshops for students, teachers, corporate professionals, designers and Cooper Hewitt’s dedicated audience.