Rewarding Filipino and Asian talent in architecture and interior design
The Asia Young Designer Award (AYDA) organized by Nippon Paint is a trendsetting program that has grown in the past nine years to encompass the best of local talents from 15 countries —Malaysia, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Pakistan, Thailand, Korea, China, Singapore, Vietnam, India, Taiwan, Japan, Sri Lanka, Hong Kong, and of course the Philippines.
Filipino students from Baguio to Zamboanga submitted ideas in a bid to win as country representative to the AYDA. Among the participating universities were Holy Angel University, National University, University of Philippines, University of Mindanao, Bulacan State University, and Technological Institute of the Philippines.
Maria Rebecca Plaza from National University emerged as the winner in the architecture category, while Noelle Samantha Bernardo from De La Salle University-College of St. Benilde presented the winning idea in the interior design category.
The theme of the annual competition for 2016 is “Be Bold, Be Free, Be You.” It encourages the students, “to get out of their comfort zones, to venture on new paths, and deliver ideas without boundaries – yet staying true to inherent components such as environmental sustainability and community centricity,” said Nippon Paint Malaysia Group general manager Gladys Goh.
The judges for the architecture category were architects Nina Bailon Arce, Consuelo Buencamino, architect and interior desginer Eduardo Calma, architects Jose Ramon Carunungan, Chona Elvas-Ponce, Maria Benita Regala and Abelardo M. Tolentino Jr.
The judges in the interior design category were Marichie Costelo, Jose Maria Hubilla, Wilfrid Nicholo Magcase, Belen Morey, Michael Pizarro, Mel Reyes and Vincent Louie Tan.
Apart from a cash prize, the Philippine AYDA grand prize winners will also embark on a six-month internship with top architectural firm Aidea Inc. or top interior design firm Lor Calma & Partners. Moreover, they will compete and participate in the AYDA Regional Learning Program, which will be held in Jogjakarta, Indonesia in 2017.