Alumni Feature: Whispering Reeds ADAA 2011

Posted on July 9, 2012 by jmilovic | Comments (1)

An Ancient Greek myth inspires the Mobile App of ADAA 2011 Finalists Damiano Gui, Martina Maitan and Paolo Basso
Iuav University of Venice

The combination of their University’s impressive ADAA track record (10 Finalists/Winners since 2008!), and the encouragement from their professors, lead to the team sending in their application concept.   The project entitled “Whispering Reeds” is an interactive system, accessed by a mobile device, through which people can “plant a reed” anywhere in Venice to record their thoughts and sensations, and can listen to the “whispering reeds” of others. Their project was inspired by the Ancient Greek myth of Midas and plays with the unifying human experience of imbuing our physical surroundings with our emotional and intuitive lives.

We really enjoyed the chance to talk to the team and find out what they have been up to since the 2011 awards in Taipei.

 

Martina Maitan

Martina Maitan

Damiano Gui

Damiano Gui

Paolo Basso

Paolo Basso



 
Tell us a little bit about your project and the process of getting it done.

Martina: My team I decided to enter the competition because this seemed to be a good opportunity for measuring our ability as interaction designers at an international level. After the initial phase of brainstorming, we created the perfect interface to fit the need of the user, and then a working prototype and finally checked our work with some user tests.

 

Your impressive design earned you some attention after the awards! You went from Finalists in 2011, to being the team behind the fully functional Wings app for the ADAA 2012 campaign!  How did that happen?

Damiano: Shortly after the ADAA competition the guys from LABOR Studio, the team responsible for the design of ADAA campaigns, got in contact with us asking for our help in making the official ADAA 2012 App. We agreed enthusiastically, even if a bit scared: all of our past projects were just prototypes, and we had never built an actual application before! It was a real challenge, but we eventually succeeded. We couldn’t have done it without the help and support from our friends and from Mathias, Arnfried and Stephan (LABOR team). The Adobe Awards Wings App is now available in Google Play and in the Apple App Store and we are so proud of it!

 

How else have the ADAA’s impacted your  opportunities as designers?

Damiano: This July, I start a four-month internship at the MIT SenseAble City Lab in Boston, MA. I couldn’t even think of something like this a year ago. I just had interviews with studios from Madrid, Paris, Berlin, London and New York. All this thanks to my portfolio, which now includes an ADAA Finalist award and an Adobe featured App on top of all my other projects.

Martina: The ADAA has given me the opportunity to see my value as a designer on a global stage.  Like Damiano, I have also gotten a summer internship – mine is at Fjord Studios in Berlin.

Paolo: And I will be in Treviso, Italy at Studio Log607 for my internship!

 

How did the ADAA experience influence your outlook as designers?

Martina: The ADAA has been a force pushing me to pursue my path with much more strength and conviction than before this experience.  It gave me the chance to see other people with the same dreams and expectations and they have been an example for me.

Damiano: The ADAA’s jury choices made me reflect on what should be the aim of a designer today: not from the market point of view, but from an ethic and social one. Our project was a user-centred service design, which can shift technical complexity into a simpler and more emotion-oriented and poetic shape. I think this is the reason why Whispering Reeds was one of the Finalist projects. I think this is the right way to go in design for the future.

 

 

So where do you see design going in the next decade?  What do you think its role will be in industry, culture and society?

Paolo: I think that the role of design will be increasingly in the direction of the user experience, with the intention of improving the person’s life, not just with new functionality, but with the ease of use.

Martina: I think so too.  In my opinion, interaction design will have a central role in the future of any person.

Damiano: I see the role of a designer finally gaining the importance that it deserves.  People are coming to understand that technology is not just a brain’s matter: it’s a heart’s one too. Only thanks to designers we will achieve a world in which human beings and technology have a virtuous relationship.

 

Thinking about these reflections on the role of design and looking back over your experiences as students and ADAA Finalists, what advice or insight do you have for current design students?

Martina: As a student you should aim to keep a clear focus on your goals and dreams, but to always remain passionate and curious for new things that happen around you.

Paolo: When it comes to designing, the most important thing is to never design from start to finish alone! Discuss your project as many times as possible with different people during the process, so you can see mistakes and opportunities for improvement that often you don’t notice on your own.

Damiano: What I learnt is that you can’t do everything, but there is nothing you can’t learn if you have passion and ambition. So don’t worry too much about your technical skills and try to keep your mind and eyes wide open to the world, even to what is not related to your field. Aim high and don’t refuse any good opportunity, even if it could scare you in the beginning.

 

This impressive team are all finishing their Masters at Iuav University of Venice: Damiano and Paolo are writing their theses in Visual and Multimedia Communication Design, while Martina is doing hers in Interaction Design.  You can learn more about the Whispering Reeds project in our ADAA Gallery.  You can see more of Damiano, Paolo and Martina’s work in their personal portfolios:

http://www.paolobasso.com
http://www.damianogui.com
http://www.martinaemme.com

Did You Know?!

Posted on June 12, 2012 by jmilovic | Comments (2)

As the deadline is fast approaching (competition closes in less than two weeks!!!) we are getting many daily questions from applicants.  We thought it would be useful for everyone to do a post on the topic to share with you all!

Here are some important tips and guidelines:

  • Each contestant can submit up to (3) three different projects in each category.
  • Each contestant can submit projects in as many categories as they like!  The only limitation is that you cannot apply to a category in which you already hold Semi-Finalist status.
  • If you submitted your project to a previous Session and it did not get selected for the Semi-Final round, you can re-submit the same project again, BUT it has to be changed or updated somehow.
  • You can see the www.adobeawards.com website and application form in 14 languages.  Use the drop-down menu at the top of the page.
  • Even if you are a recent graduate, you can submit work that was created after May 1, 2011, if you were a student at the time of its completion.
  • We encourage all contestants to submit more than one project!  Send us all your end of term work!
  • We encourage group projects!
  • Entries into the Application and Game categories do not need to be functional!  Send in your amazing concepts.
  • There are (3) three categories that are just for faculty!  Know an innovative educator?  Get them to send in their projects!
  • You can download fully functional trial versions of the Adobe software you will need to make or finish your project on our website.  Your entry must be created primarily using Adobe tools (50% or more).

And last but not least – the ultimate piece of important information that you should write on sticky notes all around your desk:

  • Final deadline is 22 June 2012, 17:00PST!!!

Hope that helps!  If you have any more questions, feel free to drop them in the comments.

- The ADAA Team

Session II Semi-Finalists Announced

Posted on June 8, 2012 by jmilovic | Comments (0)

Oh, how time flies!

It seems like it was mere moments ago that the 2012 ADAA’s kicked off the call for entries for this year’s competition – but here we are, already in the third and final session of submissions!  Not only that, this week we made the big announcement that over 1200 Session II hopefuls were waiting for!  The whopping 289 Semi-Finalists for Session II are officially announced and visible on our live Semi-Finalist Page.

What exactly does it mean to be a Semi-Finalist?  A lot!  The most amazing thing about the ADAA’s (in our humble opinion!) is that to enter the competition is to already become a member of this incredible international community of designers, students, educators and professionals.  Adding your Semi-Finalist status to your resume or portfolio is a great idea too and will increase your profile!  It also means that you are one step closer to our amazing prizes which include a trip to Toronto and passes to DesignThinkers, $3000 cash and Adobe software!

But even if you did not make it in this round, by joining us on our social media and networking sites, such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and G+, you gain access to worldwide network of individuals – all committed to the same goal: encouraging and supporting design potential in emerging designers, and celebrating the innovation of design educators.  So, go ahead, join our community and start a conversation – the ADAA’s are not just a competition, but also your platform for sharing ideas, perspectives and inspirations with people all over the world!  And remember, you can submit again in the current session!

We are proud of our growing worldwide family!  So far we have contestants from 57 different countries: from Malaysia to Germany, Colombia to Taiwan.  It is amazing to think about the incredible diversity in culture and in approach to design that we see in our applications. Reflecting on this diversity, Pre-Selection Panel Judge Monica Zacarias (Mexico), believes that:

“Even though we are living in a particular moment where global communication gives access to all, it is inspiring to feel the different nationalities in the works submitted to the ADAA competition.”

We all continue to be inspired by the relationship between design and its expression through the diverse approaches of our contestants.  Yet, no matter where a designer comes from, the objective of the project is always the same: to express, to move, to motivate, to help us understand.  The real value of exploring other cultures is the ability to see the goals of design expressed in new and interesting ways.  In the words of Monica:

“Culture gives personality to the work.”

- The ADAA Team

Welcome to the ADAA Experience blog!

Posted on May 29, 2012 by jmilovic | Comments (0)

So, what’s this blog all about?!

First and foremost, the ADAA Experience blog is here to give you just that: a sneak peak at what the Adobe Design Achievement Awards are all about and a taste of what it is like to be a part of the ADAA community!  We will be doing features on past winners and contestants to find out what they have been up to since their involvement in the competition.  We will give you a behind-the-scenes look at the judging, taking place at the magnificent Adobe Headquarters in San Jose, California – and, of course, you will come on the road with us to the 2012 Award Ceremony in beautiful Toronto, Canada.  You will get to know many of the amazing people that are part of the ADAA community and learn about how the ADAA’s contribute to the international growth and recognition of design, creativity and innovation!

Mix in some exclusive content like interviews with judges and Adobe executives, snapshots and teasers, and a good dose of surprises – and you’ve got yourself a front row seat to all things ADAA!

We hope you will come back soon and come back often.  Comment, share and spread the ADAA love!  Oh, and don’t forget to SUBMIT your projects, of course!  There truly is no better way to introduce yourself to the ADAA family.  You can find all the info you need on our website, but we bet you knew that already .  ;)

Here we go, amigos!  Join us on our big adventure!

- The ADAA Team