The inaugural year of the INDE.Awards did what no other design awards program has done: unite our APAC region. We recap the winners as we anticipate what 2018’s cycle will bring.
January 12th, 2018
When we launched the INDE.Awards, we at Indesign Media Asia Pacific had a powerful big picture in mind. Our aim was to recognise the Asia Pacific region’s most progressive design and architecture on a global stage, and in so doing, to create a unifying lens for all of us across what is an extremely diverse part of the world.
Strength, after all, comes with unity. The INDE.Awards are about assessing Asia Pacific’s designers and designs on the region’s own terms, not the terms of the world’s other design centres. We believe we have set a new benchmark for design accolades across APAC.
“It’s showing we’re coming of age as a region,” said INDE.Awards 2017 jury member Sue Carr, the Founder of Carr Design Group, of the 2017 awards program. “We’re starting to demonstrate what we do and how we do it. We’re forging our own way.”
In 2017 the INDE.Awards received over 400 entries from 14 countries all around the region, with the most entries coming from Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, China, India, Indonesia and Japan. Despite the diversity of entrants’ locations, the jury had no major differences of opinion – a strong indicator of the cross-border consensus going on across APAC nations and beyond.
Who were the big winners in 2017? Here’s a quick recap:

Winner | The Building, brought to you by Cult
Indigo Slam, Smart Design Studio
“Exceptionally grand and rich in detail” – Jury
.

Winner | The Design Studio, brought to you by Denovo Recruitment
Austin Maynard Architects
“An acerbic intellect combined with a great big heart” – Jury
.

Winner | The Influencer, brought to you by Interface
Central Seat & Drinking Fountain, Steendijk for Embassy Living
“Creatively intelligent” – Jury
.

Winner | The Work Space, brought to you by Shaw Contract
Slack Melbourne Office, Breathe Architecture
“A natural place for human interaction” – Jury
.

Winner | The Living Space, brought to you by Gaggenau
Cornwall Gardens, CHANG Architects
“A wonderful blend of nature and architecture” – Jury
.

Winner | The Social Space, brought to you by Living Edge
Humming Puppy, Karen Abernethy Architects
“Human responsive design at its best” – Jury
.

Winner | The Object, brought to you by Neolith
HUP HUP Chair, SKEEHAN Studio
“A beautifully resolved and thoughtful piece” – Jury
.

Winner | The Prodigy, brought to you by Cosentino
Vince Alafaci & Caroline Choker, Acme&Co
“Formidable talents to be watched” – Jury
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Winner | The Luminary, brought to you by Wilkhahn
William Smart, Smart Design Studio
“A genuine, deserving icon” – Jury
.

Winner | Launch Pad Australia, brought to you by Schiavello
PLICO, Dora Ferenczi
“Intensely relevant for the future of the workplace” – Jury
.

Winner | Launch Pad Asia, brought to you by Schiavello
Never Mind Tableware Series, Jonathan Saphiro Salim
“Sophistication, maturity, and intuitive sensitivity” – Jury
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Winner | Best of the Best, brought to you by Zenith
Indigo Slam, Smart Design Studio
“Exceptionally grand and rich in detail” – Jury
.
Thank you to all our sponsors and partners in 2017 for supporting the inaugural INDE.Awards!
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Four new award categories, for starters. Design and architecture in APAC are progressing in response to the region’s needs, and so are the INDE.Awards. We have introduced four new award categories to safeguard the success of the INDE.Awards as a barometer of progressive design around APAC: The Multi-Residential Building, The Shopping Space, The Learning Space, and The Wellness Space. Read more about them in our new category explainer.
Find out who’s in our stellar international 2018 jury here, and stay tuned for the announcement of additional juror names!
The world’s eyes are on Asia Pacific. Be part of the voice celebrating the region’s best design in 2018. Entries close on 29 January 2018.
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