Marimekko Corporation, Press release 2 March 2011 2.00 PM
INTERNATIONAL MARIMEKKO DESIGN COMPETITION ”WHY NOT TOGETHER?” IN HONOUR OF THE 60th ANNIVERSARY YEAR STARTS IN MARCH
“I only want to bring people together so they can get to know each other and gain something from one another.” – Armi Ratia, the founder of Marimekko, 1969
In celebration of its 60-year path Marimekko, together with the Department of Design at the Aalto University School of Art and Design, challenges students at the world’s leading schools of design in an international Marimekko competition on the theme ”Why not together?”. The theme of the design competition starting in March draws from Marimekko’s long tradition of doing things together. At Marimekko it is believed that when you do things together, everything is possible. This rich interaction ensues when people from different fields, cultures or continents are brought together. It is this interaction that can make it possible to solve even the toughest problems.
The design competition focuses, in accordance with the umbrella theme, on solutions that bring people together, fit in with Marimekko’s business environment, and will work through different cultures and regions of the world. The competition encompasses three categories: products for living, not pretending – for good everyday life; action, events and encounters generated by aesthetic thinking; and service – just to make things run even better. The solutions should be unique, of high quality and sustainable and fit in with Marimekko’s product portfolio or set of activities. The targeted group for competition entries are people who refuse to be bored and are surrounded by an atmosphere of vitality.
Marimekko and the Aalto University School of Art and Design already have a long tradition of collaboration which will be taken to a whole new level by the design competition, which will be extraordinarily high in quality and international on the global scale. Marimekko and the Aalto University School of Art and Design have invited the world’s leading design schools and their students to take part in the competition: Design Academy Eindhoven from the Netherlands; Konstfack University College of Arts, Craft and Design from Sweden; the Royal College of Art from the UK; Parsons The New School for Design from the USA; and Tama Art University from Japan. The competition is open to all students at the Aalto University. The jury will also be international, with its membership comprised of Marimekko’s Creative Director Minna Kemell-Kutvonen and Product Director Niina Nenonen, Head of the Department of Design at the Aalto University School of Art and Design Professor Pirjo Hirvonen, Aalto University School of Art and Design Researcher Tuuli Mattelmäki, Design Academy Eindhoven’s Chairwoman Executive Anne Mieke Eggenkamp, Tama Art University’s Professor Tadashi Takahashi, Parsons The New School for Design’s Assistant Professor Timo Rissanen, Philosopher Pekka Himanen, and Academician Vuokko Eskolin-Nurmesniemi.
”Marimekko has always believed in young, fresh talent. Young people are the builders of the future and brilliant pioneers. Our diamond anniversary theme ‘Why not together’ impelled us to challenge young people around the world to join in our competition to think up solutions for everyday life from the perspective of doing things together. This competition that in an exceptional way brings together the best design schools in the world will also enable us to recruit talents of tomorrow for our strong team,” says Marimekko’s Creative Director Minna Kemell-Kutvonen.
”The competition is already now raising great interest. Our talented students are competing for the first time together with the students of the entire Aalto University as well as with our best international partner design schools. We are ready to create something new together – with a bold plunge and the strong grip of the Aalto University School of Art and Design!” says Dean Helena Hyvönen of the Aalto University School of Art and Design.
The Marimekko design competition will be in two parts. Part one begins at 4.30 PM GMT on 15 March 2011 when the competition will be declared open in the Sampo Hall at the Aalto University School of Art and Design and simultaneously through the Marimekko website in a video at partner schools. The deadline for the part one of the design competition is 6 May 2011 at 2 PM GMT. The finalists in the competition will be announced on 24 May 2011 and the winners will be declared on 14 September 2011.
For further information, please contact:
Marimekko:
Tiina Alahuhta-Kasko, Head of PR, tel. +358 9 758 7328, tiina.alahuhta-kasko@marimekko.fi
Minna Kemell-Kutvonen, Creative Director, tel. +358 9 758 7301,
minna.kemell-kutvonen@marimekko.fi
Aalto University School of Art and Design:
Anne Tapanainen, Communications Manager, tel. +358 9 470 30652, anne.tapanainen@aalto.fi
Pirjo Hirvonen, Head of Department, tel. +358 9 470 30603, pirjo.hirvonen@aalto.fi
MARIMEKKO CORPORATION
Marketing Communications
Tiina Alahuhta-Kasko
Tel. +358 9 758 7328
Email: tiina.alahuhta-kasko@marimekko.fi
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Marimekko's website www.marimekko.com
Marimekko is a leading Finnish textile and clothing design house. Through its timeless, individual, practical and beautiful designs, Marimekko aims to provide aesthetic experiences for every moment in life for people of all ages. The array of Marimekko design embraces interior decoration items ranging from furnishing fabrics to tableware as well as clothing, bags, jewellery and other accessories. When Marimekko was founded in 1951, the unparalleled patterns and colours of its printed fabrics gave it a strong and unique identity. In 2010, Marimekko's net sales were EUR 73.3 million, of which international sales accounted for 29.4%. Marimekko products are available in roughly 40 countries. The company has roughly 390 employees. Marimekko's shares are quoted on NASDAQ OMX Helsinki Ltd. www.marimekko.com
The Aalto University School of Art and Design is dedicated to media, art and design and has a strong and active international presence. It is a Nordic leader and one of the most renowed in its fields worldwide. Founded in 1871, the School is a pioneer in research and education. Aalto University is a new multidisciplinary science and art community in the fields of science, economics, and art and design. The new University is founded on Finnish strengths, and its goal is to develop as a unique entity to become one of the world's top universities. Aalto University's cornerstones are its strengths in education and research. At the new University, there are 20,000 basic degree and graduate students as well as a staff of 4,500 of which 300 are professors. The total budget for 2009 was close to EUR 368 million. In 2009, a total of 1,567 Master's Degrees and 180 Doctorates were completed at the three Schools. The number of alumni totals 75,000. www.aalto.fi
