1st place and within top 10: Two Rhine-Waal students successful in design competition of the Frankfurt Book Fair
This year’s ‘Wettbewerb für junge Gestalter’ (Competition for Young Designers) was dedicated to designing an original welcome for France, the official Guest of Honour at the 2017 Frankfurt Book Fair. Design students from different universities in Germany and Switzerland participated in the competition, designing 240 complex and innovative posters that focus on the French language.
The Wettbewerb für junge Gestalter competition was first introduced in 2006 by the Frankfurt Book Fair in cooperation with the city of Frankfurt. Each year, designers are given the opportunity to develop original motifs welcoming the annual Guest of Honour. The competition was held exclusively for four universities in the Rhine-Main area of Germany until 2014, but is now open to universities all over Germany and Switzerland.
From among the 240 submissions, an expert jury selected the ten best for display in an exhibit at the Museum Angewandte Kunst [Museum of Applied Arts] in Frankfurt. Annika de Fries, who studies in the Information and Communication Design programme of the Faculty of Communication and Environment in Kamp-Lintfort, took 1st place and won a €1,500 prize for her submission “Miau Miaou”. Her winning poster will be displayed all over Frankfurt and will also be printed on postcards. The jury explained that it was particulary impressed with the enchanting way in which Ms de Fries highlighted the subtle difference between the French and German language. The jury consisted of representatives of the Frankfurt Book Fair, the organisational committee of the 2017 Guest of Honour France, the Museum Angewandte Kunst, the Cultural Council of the city of Frankfurt and the German Designer Agency Michael Eibes Design.
Another success for the University was Student Lara Keskinkilic’s design which was one of the ten posters selected for destinction by the jury. Both students developed their posters as part of a course led by Christoph Zielke, Professor for Media Design, in the Information and Communication Design programme of Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences.
This year’s award winners live up to earlier success of the University. In 2015, Katja Kandora won 2nd place and in 2016 Alexander Altrichter’s design was one of ten selected for destinction by the jury.
The competition winners and their submissions:
1st Place (€1,500 award): “Miau Miaou” submitted by: Annika de Fries
2nd Place (€1,000 award): „Die Franzosen kommen“ submitted by: Sarah Kowatsch (Hochschule Trier)
3rd Place (€500 award): ): „Bonjour, Coucou, Salut“ submitted by: Vivien Koch (Hochschule für Kunst, Design und Populäre Musik Freiburg)