Bienenstock Furniture Library Announces 2018 Interior Design Competition Winners

Furniture World News Desk on 3/26/2018

Earlier this month the Bernice Bienenstock Furniture Library Board of Directors announced the winners of design competitions that awarded two $5,000 scholarships to distinguished scholars to continue studies in their respective fields of Interior and Furniture Design. In addition to the $5,000 awards, each has been given memberships in the ASFD and ASID professional associations and their schools will receive $1,000 to use in their academic programs.

The Bienenstock scholarships are open to any junior, senior or graduate student enrolled in an accredited college design program and have awarded more than $430,000 in scholarship money. The winning entry can be downloaded from this winners link. A PDF of the complete Press Release can also be downloaded. This is the Second of a two part release announcing the winners and finalists of the Interior Design Competition.

"Our founder, Sandy Bienenstock, advanced his long-standing desire to invest in the education and future of the furniture industry by establishing the Library itself and by initiating the Bienenstock Scholarships," said Russell Bienenstock, president of the Library Board. "The intention of these scholarships is to encourage and inspire the best and most creative minds and to help them to develop their talents. To that end, this is the fifth year we added a scholarship for interior design to our long-standing award in furniture design, creating two substantial national scholarships."

These competitions are a collaborative effort among the ASFD, ASID and the Furniture Library. The Library founded the competition and awards the scholarships from its foundation. The ASID and ASFD help to sponsors the competition by providing actual projects, and judging. The library hosts the competition and funds the scholarships. This is an annual competition and a new contest will be announced in May of 2018.

INTERIOR DESIGN COMPETITION
Entrants were given the following real world assignment: a client had just purchased two adjoining, three-story brick row houses dating to the turn of the century. The students were asked to combine the two units into a single art gallery that will display the work of cutting-edge artists. The first and second floors are used for exhibiting art, hosting special events and serving as a community meeting space and will contain an office and catering kitchen. The third floor is reserved for the couple's private residence. They must also brand the edifice with a logo consistent with the purpose of the building.

The competition received 39 entries from 10 colleges including: Virginia Tech, SCAD, Forsyth Tech, San Diego Mesa College, Randolph Community College, Appalachian State University, George Washington University, High Point University, University of Southern Mississippi and University of Central Oklahoma.

Victoria Smith
Virginia Tech
First Place Award for Interior Design

The winning entry was submitted by Victoria Smith an academic Senior studying Interior Design at Virginia Tech. She said, "This project has truly sparked my creativity and encouraged me to understand the balance between designing an inspiring space, while maintaining the focus on the beauty of the art itself. I enjoyed the challenge of integrating a subtractive approach rather than an additive one." She branded her project "MIN" using interlocking parallelograms of various widths in black and white. Although it needs little explanation, she expanded on a deeper meaning, "Just as this rust belt city has transformed back to its original state, minimalist art is reduced to a minimum number of lines, textures, and colors. Inspired by the works of Donald Judd and Sol LeWitt, the repetition, reduction, and elimination of geometric forms adjusts the user's perception to create an exploratory experience.

The underlying geometry of the existing building, created by the structural columns and walls, implies a series of cubes. Studying these cubes provided a sense of scale, proportion, and hierarchy that determined the design of the gallery and the apartment."

She added, "Materiality is central to the work of minimalist artists. These artists focus on exposing the essence of their pieces through the elimination of non-essential forms and materials. Raw materials such as brick, wood, leather, quartz, and aluminum are utilized to emphasize the concept and reference the pieces found within the gallery.

The custom reception desk, made of recycled aluminum, is a nod to the works by Donald Judd and Sol LeWitt, who use steel or aluminum in their sculptures. While most of the space remains black and white, an accent of red enhances the space and stimulates the viewers. Red is symbolic of Donald Judd's paintings highlighted in the project. The use of recessed linear lighting throughout the gallery and the apartment enhances the geometry of each space and serves as a wayfinding element.

Judges in the interior design category included: Christi Spangle, Barbour Spangle Designs; Bri Verstat, Barbour Spangle Designs; June Anderson, ASID; Kara Cox, Kara Cox Interiors, Marilyn Russell, Marilyn Ashley Design Associates, Rose Dostal, RMD Designs, Gwen Emery, NCSU; Jessica Alpert, Gensler.

Christi Spangle one of the judges commented: "I liked the play on a minimalist movement and excellent use of space" Judge June Anderson commented "great logo and incorporation of original architectural details", Judge Bri Verstat said the "Background colors were clear and crisp and perfect for art display"



Lisa M. Tucker, Professor and Chair of Interior Design at the Virginia Tech School of Architecture commented, "I am so pleased and excited for Tori for winning this competition! She is such a hard worker and takes her design process very seriously. She keeps trying to make her projects better and clearly that paid off.

Tori grew up with a first-hand view of the design business. "My mother is an interior designer, and when I was a little girl, I always found myself drawing on her floor plans and creating my own material palettes in her resource library."

Tori will graduate in May and has accepted a position at Huntsman Architectural Group on Wall Street in New York City. Her short-term goals are to pass the NCIDQ and obtain a Sustainability Certification. When asked what she might tell her younger self she replied, "trust yourself and the process. Stick to what's in your heart and everything will work out." Currently she is more interested in workplace design than residential design. She opined, "we spend a lot more time at work than we do at home. Design is about enhancing the quality of life no matter where you are, and I want to focus my energies on making workplaces more satisfying."

SECOND PLACE WINNER
The second place winner was Meredith Fraga, from Virginia Tech. She receives a $1,500 scholarship to be applied to continuing education. The judges loved the thought out use of space planning and excellent lighting; enjoyed the color on the ceiling with the neutral walls. Her professor , Lisa Tucker, who was also the professor for the first place winner said, "Meredith is so deserving of this honor. She was surprised when her project was picked to be submitted for the competition and I suspect she was shocked to hear she had won second place. I am thrilled for her."

More about the Bienenstock Scholarships: The annual Bienenstock Scholarship competitions are open to any junior, senior or graduate student enrolled in an accredited college program of furniture design or interior design. Since 1984, the Library has awarded more than $430,000 in scholarships to students in hundreds of colleges and universities. Judging is blind-with no name or college shown with the submission. A distinguished panel of industry experts juried each competition.

The 2018 winners will be awarded their $5,000 scholarships, along with respective one-year student membership in ASFD or ASID, during High Point Market in April. Second place winners each receive a $1,500 scholarship and the colleges representing the first place winners each receive $1,000 towards their programs.

More about Bernice Bienenstock Furniture Library: The Bernice Bienenstock Furniture Library is a worldwide center for research, design, and collaboration. It holds the world's largest collection of rare and significant books on the history and design of furniture, with more than 5,000 volumes.

The Library is located in High Point, NC and is open to members of the home furnishings industry, students and the general public. The Library was founded in 1970 with an endowment from Furniture World Magazine and the Bienenstock family. It is supported by a board of directors from nearly every facet of the home furnishings industry. It is devoted the advancement of knowledge about design, furniture, interiors, architecture, textiles, finishes, and constructions. 

The Library's rare book collection contains volumes published since 1543. A special climate controlled room houses these rare volumes. It is a treasure trove of inspiration for anyone interested in home furnishings and interior design.

The Library's facilities include the Vuncannon Seminar Room, the high tech Hadley Court Center For Design Collaboration and the Pat Plaxico Sculpture Gardens. These areas are available for seminars, classes, events, meetings, design collaborations, networking and design retreats for a small honorarium.

In addition, the Library operates a specialty bookstore selling significant contemporary works, out-of-print, and hard-to-find volumes. For more information visit www.furniturelibrary.com or contact Karla Webb, Library Director at info@furniturelibrary.com or 336-883-4011.

More about ASID: ASID is a community of people driven by a common love for design and committed to the belief that interior design, as a service to people, is a powerful, multifaceted profession that can positively change people's lives. 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 30,000 members engage in a variety of professional programs and activities through a network of 48 chapters throughout the United States and Canada. Founded in 1975, the American Society of Interior Designers is the oldest, largest and leading professional organization for interior designers. The Society's membership also includes more than 10,500 students of interior design. For more information, visit www.asid.org