Hungarian Design Award Winners 2017

Jury statement:
In its collections WYHOYS addresses current global environmental and social issues such as environmental pollution and the disruption of the earth’s ecological balance. The mission of the brand is to invest some of the income from its sales into solving global problems that inspire the products. The award-winning collection is based on one of its iconic pieces: a felt coat made of Australian merino wool with a black and white graphic design reminiscent of oil slicks. Wool threads of different colours are intertwined symbolising the connection between water and oil; the rest of the collection echoes this pattern. The jury highly valued the responsible design attitude and the competitive and professional design of forms. Another noteworthy aspect of the collection is the use of certified eco-friendly raw materials, threads and dyes, which re-enhances the brand’s fundamental concept.

Jury statement:
SHOKA is at once complex and simple: it is a modern device with a variety of functions (light, bell, navigation system, alarm and a traceroute tool) and easy operability. It is conspicuously practical, while it has an attractive design and thanks to its complex functions it links a vehicle looking back on a tradition of some 200 years with today’s world of smart phones and GPS navigation, in which the bicycle is living its renaissance. The cycling subculture is developing in Hungary too but the framework for cycling and the attitude of cyclists still leave much to be desired. SHOKA is the result of a significant innovation development and is close to being a ready product. It is certain to become a market success, and, importantly, it has the potential to become a cultic device contributing to the improvement of cycling culture.

Jury statement:
Inspired by the 100^th anniversary of a lesser known yet important event of cultural history – the design of the cover of the De Stijl magazine by Vilmos Huszár in 1917 – the HV_100 project is a unique undertaking aimed at connecting the past with the present. It directs attention to an era when Hungarian creative genius played an active part in shaping the most progressive international art and design movements. Although not as widely known as that of László Moholy-Nagy and Marcell Breuer, the life’s work of Vilmos Huszár was of great significance. Dóra Balla’s book, however, is more than celebrating an anniversary: it establishes a contemporary creative link with Huszár’s De Stijl design by placing it into a modern-day context. This approach forms the basis of the font concept but the publication of the 100 font sets in this volume goes well beyond the commemoration and the expression of reverence for Huszár’s work: it creates an unambiguously autonomous relation to it. The HV_100 project book summarises and documents this relationship, and thanks to its carefully elaborated design, subtle details, reduced palette and moderate gestures, it is a clear declaration of standing by the international contributions made by Hungarian culture