Press Release
Arash Raad Is Honored with the Silver A' Design Award for Rhapsody Necklace in Jewelry Design
Arash Raad honored for jewelry design by the international grand jury of the 2020 - 2021 A' Design Award & Competition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 23, 2021 /DesignNewswire/ A' Design Award & Competition has announced that Rhapsody Necklace by Arash Raad has been granted the Silver A' Design Award in the Jewelry Design category. The recognition forms part of the 2020 - 2021 A' Design Award & Competition and was reached through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who evaluated anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.
What the Silver A' Design Award Means
The Silver A' Design Award celebrates top-tier designs that embody excellence and innovation. This award acknowledges creations that are not only aesthetically pleasing but also highly functional, reflecting the designer's deep understanding and skill. Silver A' Design Award recipients are recognized for their contribution to raising industry standards and advancing the practice of design. Their work often incorporates original innovations and elicits a strong emotional response, making a notable impact on the improvement of everyday life.
More About Rhapsody Necklace
Rhapsody is a hand-crafted necklace made of 925 silver. The design is based on Islamic geometric patterns that developed over centuries in the Middle East and North Africa. Sculptural folds and ruffles turn the angular geometry of these patterns into a wearable form that follows the human body. Rhapsody is produced in Mashhad, Iran, a city known for traditional crafts, using traditional tools, techniques and materials. The necklace measures 175 by 160 by 45 millimetres. The intent is to join a rich cultural heritage with contemporary jewellery design.
About Arash Raad
Arash Raad (b. 1971, Mashhad, Iran) is a jewellery designer and engineer. Raad’s practice is influenced by the art and cultural heritage of Iran, where he was born, raised and lives. Raad revisits traditional motifs and vernacular to design handmade jewelleries that have both authentic and contemporary aspects. Coming from an engineering background, Raad is experienced in working with a variety of material and tools. That experience makes him capable of fabricating complicated concepts and manufacturing handmade products in the finest quality. His work is elegant and innovative, while, at the same time, it addresses his identity and history.
Award Record
This recognition makes Arash Raad a winner of 1 A' Design Award.
About the A' Jewelry Design Award
The A' Jewelry Design Award is an international jewelry design competition recognizing good jewelry designs by best jewelry designers worldwide. The competition is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to jewelry designers, jewelry brands, jewelers and goldsmiths from all countries. Entries typically include rings, necklaces, bracelets, earrings, brooches and pendants. Awarded jewelry designs are published at https://designers.org/design-category/jewelry
About A' Design Award & Competition
A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade organized annually since 2008. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The A' Design Award has a philanthropic mission to advance society through good design by recognizing and promoting superior products, projects and services that benefit society, and by creating a global awareness and appreciation for good design practices and principles. Entries are peer reviewed and anonymously evaluated by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members against predetermined criteria such as functionality, ergonomics, engineering, presentation, innovation, usability, sustainability and technology, with score normalization applied to remove biases. Awards are conferred at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron levels. The A' Design Prize granted to eligible laureates includes the award trophy, the certificate of design excellence, the hardcover yearbook, a lifetime license to use the A' Design Award winner logo, exhibition of awarded works, an invitation to the gala night and award ceremony in Italy, inclusion in the World Design Rankings and Designer Rankings, and public relations and publicity services. Registration, the upload of a work and the preliminary score are free of charge, and Professional and Digital Edition laureates are not contractually obliged to pay further fees to claim the A' Design Prize. Further information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://designers.org/118656
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/118656
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!118656
- Laureate Profile: https://designers.org/d/295536
- Further Information from the Laureate: http://arashraad.com
Media Contact
Giulia Ferrari, Press Office
Designers.Org
Via Leone Leoni 32, 22100 Como, Italy
press@designers.org
+39 031 4491953
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Fact Sheet
The Work
- Project
- Rhapsody Necklace
- Function
- Necklace
- Category
- Jewelry Design
- Discipline
- Fashion Design
- Industry
- Luxury and Fashion
- Colors
- Light Gray, Silver, Dark Gray, Gray and White Smoke
- Images
- 5
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Arash Raad
- Country
- Iran
- Recognition
- Silver A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2020 - 2021
- Design ID
- #118656
Credits
- Image Credits
- Photographer Mojtaba Mohammadi, Rhapsody, 2021.; Photographer Mojtaba Mohammadi, Rhapsody, 2021. Video: Director Ali Ebrahimi Sani, Rhapsody, 2021.
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- Rhapsody is a hand-crafted fine jewellery designed for today’s most elegant and sophisticated tastes, while it revives the glory of Middle-Eastern cultures and their rich and epic history. It is made by employing traditional techniques and material in Mashhad city in Iran, a destination of Muslim pilgrimage and a center of traditional crafts. Rhapsody is a modern wearable sculpture based on Islamic geometry that is made for anyone who is eager for an elegant and stylish look.
- Inspiration
- This project is inspired by Islamic geometric patterns that have evolved over centuries in the Middle East and North Africa. The sculptural folds and ruffles recall the vicissitudes of history and life of these people, where its glory and beauty is woven together with pain and grief. And its rigidity and cohesion manifest the strength, richness and glory of a culture and people that have been hardened through conflicts and invasions and have been invincibled with the power of love and beauty.
- Research
- In the first instance, I'm working with patterns and geometry embedded in Islamic architecture and design, which I have grown up surrounding by it, therefore it's organically inherent to my knowledge of design. Over the course of years, I have integrated the vernacular knowledge of Islamic geometry with the contemporary aesthetics and theories. For this project we searched through over 200 different patterns to find one through which we can develop a wearable, innovative, and elegant design.
- Challenge
- In this project, we encountered two significant challenges. First, we are committed to design jewelleries that are innovative and fresh to a contemporary eye, while they are rooted in history. Tightrope walking and maintaining balance between the past and future is the hardest creative challenge we often encounter. Second complicated challenge we faced was to transform the angular geometry of architectural patterns into a sculptural and wearable form that fits and adorns the human body.
- Realization and Technology
- Design begins with searching through a variety of Islamic geometry sources to select capable patterns to be developed into a novel design. Designing continues with developing irritations through hybrid hands-on and digital process, and then narrowing down sketches and producing mock-ups. The next is trying mock-ups on the human body, collecting feedback from users, and refining the product through a round of revisions. The jewelries are hand-crafted with traditional techniques and material.
- Operation and Interaction
- Influenced by the Middle-Eastern cultural pride and growing tendencies towards revisiting the heritage, in Arash Raad Design, we are dedicating our effort to create products that fulfills both the dignity of a rich culture, and the elegance of today. We believe “Rhapsody” conveys authenticity and novelty at the same time. To aim this goal, we combined vernacular knowledge and traditional tools and material with contemporary aesthetics and theories.
- Project Duration and Location
- This project started in February 2020 in Mashhad, Iran and the first sample produced in December 2020. A' Design Award & Competition will be the premiere introduction of this product to the world.
- Specifications
- Dimension: 175 mm x 160 mm x 45 mm Material: Silver 925
- Keywords
- Jewelry, jewellery, necklace, art jewelry, art jewellery, geometric jewelry, geometric jewellery, contemporary jewelry, contemporary jewellery, accessories
