The Design Institute of Australia has announced the winners of the 2020 Graduate of the Year Awards, a program that celebrates and supports exceptional designers from around Australia in the early stages of their careers.
The overall winner, who takes home the Madeline Lester Award, is Nicole Gemlitski, a graduate of Bachelor of Industrial Design (Honours), RMIT University.
The jury praised Gemlitski for her “well resolved research and practical design solutions that not only fill a void in the market, but also consider wellbeing at the centre of their approach.”
Her final project, titled Alite, is a wireless wearble device for nurses that beeps or vibrates distinctly alerting them to the different requirements for each patient in the delivery of chemotherapy. The jury called it an “elegant solution” with the potential to impact and improve critical care management and treatment.
Eight awards were given at the national level this year, along with 25 at state level, and 5 branch winners. A jury made up of 72 members assessed 148 nominated students from 21 institutions across Australia.
“The judges had high expectations and were really looking to be impressed by this year’s GOTYA candidates,” said jury chair and DIA national president Gavin Campbell.
“We were wanting to get excited and experience an enthusiasm and passion that only comes from a student that immerses themselves into design with a full commitment to design understanding, design resolution, design aesthetic and, importantly, design originality.”
The national winners are:
Madeline Lester Award
Nicole Gemlitski – Bachelor of Industrial Design (Honours), RMIT University, nominated by Juliette Anich
Australian Interior Design Graduate Of The Year
Winner
Ben Burrows – Bachelor of Design (Hons)(Interior Design), Queensland University of Technology, nominated by Natalie Wright
Honourable mention
Jessica Love – Bachelor of Design (Interior Architecture) (Honours), Swinburne University of Technology
Australian Interior Decoration Design Graduate Of The Year
Winner
Melissa Donnan – Associate Degree of Interior Decoration and Design, RMIT University, nominated by Dellwyn Apted
Australian Furniture Design Graduate Of The Year
Winner
Louis McGowan – Associate Degree in Design (Furniture), RMIT University, nominated by Julian Pratt
Australian Textile Design Graduate Of The Year
Caroline Pattle – Bachelor of Arts, Textile Design, RMIT University, nominated by Rebecca Van Amber
Australian Industrial / Product Design Graduate Of The Year
Winner
Nicole Gemlitski – Bachelor of Industrial Design (Honours), RMIT University, nominated by Juliette Ainch
Honourable mention
Vincent Tsang – Bachelor of Design in Product Design, University of Technology, Sydney
Australian Visual Communications Design Graduate of the Year
Winner
Jaz Baker – Bachelor of Graphic Design and Bachelor of Photography, Curtin University, nominated by Jo Li Tay
Honourable mention
Rachele Andrews – Bachelor of Design (Interior Architecture) (Honours), Griffith University
Australian Fashion Design Graduate Of The Year
Winner
Reginia Anzela – Bachelor of Design Arts, Fashion and Costume Design, LCI Melbourne, nominated by Donna O’Neill
Honourable mention
Ellen Watson – Bachelor of Fashion Design, TAFE NSW Ultimo
Australian Jewellery Design Graduate Of The Year
Winner
Hoazhe Harris Wang – Bachelor of Design (Honours), UNSW Australia, nominated by Trent Jansen
Honourable mention
Jacqueline Nguyen – Advanced Diploma of Jewellery and Object Design, Melbourne Polytechnic
To see all the winners, head here.
Source: Architecture - architectureau
