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12 Sep 2011
HKDI student clinches award again in design “Oscar”
Water conservation, albeit an everyday habit, inspired Lamb TSE, a current graduate of the Higher Diploma in Product Design course of the Hong Kong Design Institute (HKDI), into creating an innovative basin and faucet set that won her the Design Concept Award of the prestigious red dot award. Named “Pond and Pine”, her bathroom fixture was the second piece of work by an HKDI student that won the same prize in a row.
The winning design comes with a projection device built into the faucet. When users washed their hands, the image of a lively fish will be projected into the palms, just like it was swimming swiftly through the running water. When the level of water used was low, the fish will be red in colour. However, with the water level rising, the fish would turn into yellow and then white and simply disappeared at the end. It was a reminder to the user that the amount of water use was excessive. Lamb said she would like her fixture to remind the user to conserve water: “I named my design ‘Pond and Pine’ because people often do not think much of the impact of lavishing water on the environment. The truth is, what will be lost is not the projected fish but the humankind if everyone uses water wastefully.” Lamb hoped every of us start to preserve the environment from our daily routines. What was more, the basin was only 5 cm deep, which meant that fast running water would easily spill over to reinforce the conservation message.
The look of the winning design was equally thought-provoking. The white basin was designed on the contours of lakes, the silver faucet on pine trees and the stopper the mountain ranges towering the lake. Lamb had a liking for landscape paintings, and she said, “A product should combine creativity, functionality and aesthetic. I found landscape painting and bathroom a good match, which can enhance the appeal of the home. The matching of white and silver colours accentuated the minimalist and contemporary design.”
Lamb TSE was pleasantly surprised by her achievement, which added impetus to her design career and reinforced her determination to be a product designer. She will fly to Singapore to receive the award in November. Her work will be exhibited in the red dot design museum in Singapore for a year. Should her work be launched into the market in the future, it would bear the red dot award logo in perpetuity for its internationally recognised design and creativity.
The red dot award, the most renowned design competition in the world, is established by a reputed German designers’ association and hailed the “Oscar” of the design industry. The competition is divided into the three categories of Product Design, Communication Design and Design Concept. Winning works will be put before an international public at the red dot design museum. Innovation, aesthetic and functionality are the main judging criteria for the Design Concept Award. This year, more than 3000 entries from professional designers and students in 49 countries were received for the Design Concept Category.
The Hong Kong Design Institute (HKDI) is a member of VTC Group. HKDI was established in 2007 with the mission to be a leading provider of design education and lifelong learning. It brings together the strengths of design departments of the Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education (IVE) to encourage synergy and interdisciplinary thinking in its broad range of design programmes. HKDI maintains a strong network with industry and provides its students with essential practical experience enriched with cultural sensitivities and sustainability. The brand new campus in Tiu Keng Leng opened in 2010 provides a creative, inspiring and vibrant learning environment for students.
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