CHICAGO – The American Society of Interior Designers – Illinois Chapter (ASID-IL) and i4design magazine recently produced and hosted the sixth annual “Celebration of Design” gala at Chicago’s Merchandise Mart. A total of 33 Illinois-based interior designers/design teams received a prestigious “Design Excellence Award.”
More than 150 guests attended the black-tie-optional gala. Presenting sponsors of the event were Cosentino (platinum); Porcelenosa (gold); Electrolux (silver); Allsteel (bronze); and additional sponsors of the event were The Merchandise Mart and Blue Plate Catering.
“The amazing design talent and record number of entries submitted in the competition this year truly gripped the guests in attendance,” says Hilary Sopata, ASID, LEED AP, 2008-09 ASID-IL Chapter president. “Almost everyone today is adjusting their business strategy and adding value however they can to stay competitive. Our clients are thinking differently—and interior designers are responding by coming up with solutions for every budget while remaining innovative.”
Entries this year increased by 40 percent. The Design Excellence Awards’ residential, contract and product design categories included: kitchen, bath, green design, corporate, health care, historic restoration, and more. A panel of distinguished interior design professionals from the ASID Georgia Chapter judged and selected category winners, including:
Category: Corporate, over 10,000 square feet
First Prize
Nicholas J. Luzietti, FIIDA, AIA, VOA Associates Inc.
Honorable Mention
Monica Gruse-Hartman, IIDA, Nagle Hartray Danker Kanga McKay Penney Architects Ltd.
Category: Contract under 10,000 square feet
First Prize
Gina Berndt, ASID, LEED AP, Perkins+Will
Honorable Mention
Jaime Velez, ASID, IIDA, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP
Category: Green contract design
Honorable Mention
Hilary Sopata, ASID, LEED AP, and Melissa Uslan, ASID, Interior Visions Designs Inc.
Category: Retail
First Prize
Gina Berndt, ASID, LEED AP, Perkins+Will
Honorable Mention
Charles Sparks, IIDA, Charles Sparks + Company
Category: Health Care
First Prize
Nicholas J. Luzietti, FIIDA, AIA, VOA Associates Inc.
Honorable Mention
Jennifer McDermott, IIDA, Perkins Eastman
Honorable Mention
Anne Rockwell, IIDA, HDR Architecture Inc.
Category: Institutional
First Prize
Trish Adelman, IIDA, Eckenhoff Saunders Architects
Honorable Mention
Eva L. Maddox, FIIDA, Perkins+Will
All winning entries will be published in a private-label magazine that will be mailed to ASID and IIDA members after the Gala. This ASID magazine is distributed throughout the year at special events held by the ASID Illinois Chapter. Additionally, select first-place winners will be published in the November Design Awards Issue of i4design.
For more information about ASID-IL, or to see a complete list of the 2009 Design Excellence Award winners, visit www.asidillinois.com, or call the ASID Illinois Chapter headquarters at (312) 467-5080.
About The "Find a Designer" Service
The Illinois Chapter of the American Society of Interior Designers offers a free, convenient, user-friendly online service that consumers and business professionals can use to search for interior designers throughout the state. Find a Designer, available at www.asidillinois.com, allows site visitors to preview profiles of ASID-IL designers before contacting them for a project interview. The online service includes easy-to-navigate Web pages and designer profile pages, and the ability to search by location and designer specialty. Consumers have the ability to review as many designer profiles as they’d like and find out more about each designer, as well as view samples of their work 24/7, at their convenience.
About ASID
The American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) is a community of people—designers, industry representatives, educators and students—committed to interior design. Through education, knowledge sharing, advocacy, community building and outreach, the Society strives to advance the interior design profession and, in the process, to demonstrate and celebrate the power of design to positively change people’s lives. Its more than 40,000 members engage in a variety of professional programs and activities through a network of 48 Chapters throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, go to www.asid.org.
