The winner of the Habitare Design Competition will be announced at the event in September

The winner of the 2020 design competition will exceptionally be present and awarded at Habitare this year, as the event has been rescheduled twice due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The 2020 theme of the Habitare Design Competition is “bread and water”. The competition sought designs for pieces of furniture and objects that are essential for us to enjoy good food and company. The task of the participants was to plan and implement an entity that includes the elements needed to enjoy our daily bread. Mandatory items of the competition proposals were a bench, a table and a bowl. The theme of the competition was perceived to be challenging, but at the same time, current and relevant. 

The Habitare Design Competition, organised by Habitare and Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture has been highlighting young design and architecture students for many years already. 

Three designs in the finals 

The jury of the competition selected three finalists this time, from which Swedish designer and architect Anna von Schewen, who was invited as the head judge of the competition, will choose the winner. Von Schewen graduated from Konstfack University of Arts, Crafts and Design in Stockholm in 1995 and is working for her own company. She designs furniture and objects for both Swedish and international companies. 

The winner will be announced during the opening ceremonies of Habitare on Wednesday 7 September 2022 at 10.10 AM on the Arena stage. 

The three finalists are: 

Kaisa Minkkinen – floor-dining furniture set Origo 

The Origo floor-dining furniture set includes a table and futon seat cushions. It creates a relaxed, intimate setting for friends or family to get together and share food – and good moments. There is a recess at the centre – or origin (origo in Finnish) – of the circular table, in which you can fit a serving bowl that everyone sitting at the table can reach. 

NG Wing Yin – Monolith 

In Monolith, different sculptural forms combine to create a set of furniture and objects designed for sharing food with friends. The unique form references the silhouette of a natural monolith. The set includes three stools, three high stools (which can also serve as tables), and three individual stands that can hold three bowls of different sizes. Users can freely arrange the elements of the product. 

Piia Johanna Jalkanen – Leipääjasahtia (‘Bread and farmhouse ale’) 

I am inspired by Japanese dining furniture, and I wanted to keep the pieces very simple and low, while aiming to create designs that are very recognisably Finnish. The pieces of furniture I designed can be assembled and disassembled, as the parts have notches to lock them in place, keeping the pieces together. The long, high bench has the traditional fastening system of Finnish farmhouse furniture. I chose Finnish pine as the material. Pine is a fine material that may need a little upgrade from being considered cottage-furniture material to being a respected furniture wood. 

The winner will receive a 5,000 EUR grand prize, donated by the Finnish Fair Foundation. The works of the finalists can be seen at Habitare 2022, which will be held from 7 to 11 September 2022 at the Helsinki Expo and Convention Centre. 

  

Further information: 

Habitare Communications Manager MarissaRämänen, marissa.ramanen@messukeskus.com, tel. +358 44 046 7220 

Head judge Anna von Schewen
The Swedish designer and architect Anna von Schewen graduated from the Konstfack University of Arts, Crafts and Design in Stockholm in 1995. In 1997, she founded her own company, Anna von Schewen Design and Architecture, which designs furniture and objects for both Swedish (Articles, Gärsnäs, String and Svenskt Tenn) and international brands (De Padova, Ditre Italia, Zanotta and Arflex Japan).

Von Schewen has received the Bruno Mathsson Award, the Masonic Order Scholarship, project grants from the Swedish Arts Grants Committee (Konstnärsnämnden), a special prize from the Swedish Society of Crafts and Design (Svensk Form), the EDIDA Award Sweden, the Sköna Hem Furniture of the Year award, the Residence Designer of the Year award, and the German Design Award. Works by Anna von Schewen are presented in the permanent collections of Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, the Norwegian Museum of Decorative Arts and Design in Oslo, the Röhsska Museum in Gothenburg, Nationalmuseum in Stockholm, and the Museum of Furniture Studies in Stockholm.

Habitare 
Habitare, the largest furniture, design and interior decoration event in Finland, will be held at Messukeskus in Helsinki, from 7 to 11 September 2022. Habitare offers experiences and ideas on interior decoration, and on the functioning and look of homes and other spaces. Habitare highlights the ideas and works by a new generation of designers, and sparks discussion. The International Friend of Habitare in 2022 is Joseph Grima. |www.habitare.fi | @HabitareFair | www.facebook.com/habitare | #habitare2022 

Photo, Video & Sound 
Partially coinciding with Habitare, the Photo, Video & Sound event will be held from 9 to 11 September 2022, focusing on photography and video, and sound recording, editing and sharing. | kuvamessut.fi | #kuvajaääni