Today, Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum has announced winners of the 17th Annual National Design Awards, which recognize excellence and innovation in 11 categories. Launched in 2000 as a project of the White House Millennium Council, Michelle Obama serves this year as the Honorary Patron of the awards.
Recipients of the 17th Annual National Design Awards include:
- Lifetime Achievement: Moshe Safdie
- Director’s Award: Make It Right
- Design Mind: Bruce Mau
- Corporate & Institutional Achievement: Center for Urban Pedagogy
- Architecture Design: Marlon Blackwell Architects
- Communication Design: Geoff McFetridge
- Fashion Design: Opening Ceremony
- Interaction Design: Tellart
- Interior Design: Studio O+A
- Landscape Architecture: Hargreaves Associates
- Product Design: Ammunition
“This year's class of winners reflect design's remarkable empathy for contemporary social concerns,” says museum director Caroline Baumann. “These designers and design firms cross disciplinary boundaries, explore innovative materials and develop new models of problem-solving in pursuit of these goals.”
A jury of design leaders chooses the recipients of the awards from nominations by the general public based on level of excellence, innovation, and public impact of their work. This year’s nine-member jury included architect Chad Oppenheim, Blu Dot cofounder John Christakos, and Syracuse Architecture associate dean Julia Czerniak.
Lifetime Achievement nominees must have at least 20 years of professional practice experience, while other nominees must have seven. Baumann selects the winner of the Director’s Award, given to an individual or organization in recognition of outstanding support and patronage within the design community.
The winners will be honored at a gala during National Design Week in October.
