HONG KONG SAR - Media OutReach ^[1]- 8 November 2021 - The Hong Kong Design Centre (HKDC) is delighted to announce the 16 awardees of the DFA Hong Kong Young Design Talent Award (DFA HKYDTA) 2021. The up-and-coming awarded designers, selected by the professional judging panel, are going to start their overseas journeys with a substantial amount of sponsorships, gaining immersive experiences and global perspectives to take their future accomplishments to the next level.

All awardees demonstrated exceptional talent and design techniques across different disciplines. The awarded Apparel and Accessory designers are the emerging new players in Hong Kong's fashion industry that we cannot afford to ignore. They have their unique and avant-garde personal design styles. Communication designers communicate with people through visual identity, illustration and story design, user experience and more, and create platforms to connect different creative forces to the community. Environmental designers have a vision of sustainable development, promoting community engagement, cultural preservation and community construction through hands-on research and innovative design. Product and industrial designers have a deep insight into the user experience and create human-centred design with environmental and innovative concepts. 14 of the winners will receive up to HK$5 million in grants to either undertake overseas work experience of 6-12 months with leading practitioners around the world or further their academic studies in related fields for 6-18 months. The experience of working or studying overseas will broaden the international perspective of young designers, enrich their artistic and cultural background, diversify and inspire their designs, thereby enabling them to create more influential designs.

Commenting on this year's DFA HKYDTA awardees, Professor Eric Yim, Chairman of HKDC states:

"The past year has shown the importance of adaptability and innovation, which has allowed an opportunity for many designers to be imaginative and come up with thoughtful solutions for the new normal. Therefore, it is our hope that by identifying these young talent early in their design journeys and exposing them to the global design industry, we can equip them with the boost needed to broaden their horizons and achieve their greatest potential as they develop their personal creative visions. We look forward to seeing their contributions to the creative industries in Hong Kong upon their return."

DFA HKYDTA is one of five DFA Awards programmes organised by the HKDC, with Create Hong Kong of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (CreateHK) as the lead sponsor, and Hong Kong Design Institute and The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, School of Design as sponsors. Established in 2005, the DFA HKYDTA's mission is to nurture and support Hong Kong's emerging design talent and fuel the growth of the local creative industry. Since its inception, this programme has provided sponsorship for over 110 Hong Kong young talent, all of which are design practitioners or graduates between the ages of 18 to 35 years old. The DFA Awards Presentation Ceremony celebrating the awardees will be held on 1 December 2021.

Please download the Press Kit, with full list of awardees and high resolutions images here: DFA Hong Kong Young Design Talent Award 2021: https://bit.ly/3BE4vWQ^[2]

References

1. ^{^} Media OutReach  (www.media-outreach.com)
2. ^{^} https://bit.ly/3BE4vWQ (bit.ly)