The 1st DBEW Award Ceremony and Forum Successfully Held at the ADI Design Museum in Milan

26.04.29 / 홍유민

2026-04-29 84

● The awards ceremony for the competition, which recognizes both educators and students, will be held on April 21 at the ADI Design Museum in Milan

● The competition garnered a strong response, receiving over 800 entries from 44 countries worldwide

● The Gold Award went to “Ecological Samsara” by Baoyi Huang and her advisor David Buck from the University of Sheffield, UK

● Beyond the awards ceremony, intellectual solidarity was fostered through the concurrent DBEW Forum featuring design masters

[April 21, 2026, Milan, Italy] The “1st DBEW Award” ceremony, which highlights the collective achievements of design students and educators worldwide and redefines design as a product of collective intelligence, was held at the ADI Design Museum on April 21, coinciding with the start of Milan Design Week. Under the slogan “Design Beyond East and West,” the award was co-hosted by Kookmin University and the ADI Design Museum. Its purpose is to discover interdisciplinary talents who will lead the future design society in the age of AI and to present the direction of creative education for sustainable growth. In particular, unlike existing design competitions, it has garnered distinctive support from the international design community for recognizing the collaboration between educators and students as a design achievement.

The event went beyond a simple awards ceremony to become a forum for open communication where students, educators, and experts exploring the future of design came together. It was operated as an open platform where anyone interested in the future of design could participate and exchange inspiration, garnering a positive response. The event was graced by the presence of a world-renowned jury, including Jury Chair Paola Antonelli, as well as Lou Yongqi, John Thackara, and Stefano Giovannoni, alongside representatives from global media. Furthermore, Lorenzo Imbesi, President of Cumulus, and Emilia Gatto, Italian Ambassador to South Korea, emphasized the significance of international solidarity and exchange embodied by this award in their congratulatory remarks.

Creative Collaboration in an Era of Boundary-less Innovation: Global Design Education Community Turns Its Attention to the DBEW Award

The DBEW Award, which closed submissions on March 15, received over 800 entries from 44 countries, demonstrating an unprecedented level of interest for a newly established award. Entries were rigorously evaluated across three categories—Architecture & Spatial Design, Product & Fashion Design, and Visual, Communication & Service Design—based on criteria such as originality, innovation, sustainability, and the convergent values of the AI era. Ten teams were selected for the Grand Prize and 30 teams for Honorable Mentions. Winners were presented with special trophies crafted from Korean pine trees that had withstood fire. This symbolized the power of design to imbue lost life with new value, elevating the prestige of the ceremony.

Winners participated via a hybrid format, combining online and in-person elements, to present their projects and share their acceptance speeches. In the subsequent forum, a more in-depth discussion took place under the theme of “A Future-Oriented Reimagining of Design Education.” Participants candidly shared the existential challenges facing design education in the rapidly changing AI era and emphasized the importance of “critical thinking.” In particular, Jury Chair Paola Antonelli engaged with the winners and students on-site, encouraging them to share their experiences from the educational frontlines. Students took the microphone in turn, voicing opinions such as, “True innovation can only emerge when the school’s deep research resources are combined with the execution capabilities of design firms,” “We must be practically connected to the local community to provide solutions,” and “As industrial designers, we urgently need a curriculum that allows us to deeply understand manufacturing processes and business mechanisms.” In closing the forum, Paola emphasized that now, more than ever, there is a need for intense discussion regarding creative design education, and she once again highlighted the necessity of collaboration that embraces diversity.

An Award Serving as a Practical Compass for Design Education in the AI Era

Kookmin University President Jeong Seung-ryeol highlighted the educational significance of the award, stating, “It serves as a practical platform that offers insights into the ‘borderless’ era—where the boundaries between nations and academic disciplines have blurred—through the lens of design education.” Citing the example of a Chinese student winning a gold award under a British university’s curriculum, he remarked, “This vividly demonstrates that the phenomenon of transcending boundaries is functioning as a practical intellectual crossroads within the design world.” He further emphasized, “As the DBEW Award visualizes the potential of a ‘global education cluster’ where teachers, students, and universities share technology and philosophy to solve humanity’s common challenges, it will serve as a crucial compass for establishing a role model for design in the AI era.” He also suggested that the DBEW Award has served as a green light, instilling confidence in Kookmin University’s journey to keenly capture the trends of the design ecosystem and lead the vision for education.

Despite being held for the first time, the award attracted overwhelming participation for three main reasons. First is the contemporary resonance embodied in the theme “Design Beyond East and West.” Efforts to pursue harmonious design where Eastern and Western values coexist for a sustainable future society, and to discover talent with creative and convergent thinking in the AI era, have garnered support from the global design community. Second, the format of joint awards for students and educators. This initiative sparked support from the educational field and served as the driving force behind participation not only from students in design-leading nations but also from those in countries facing geopolitical crises and difficulties. Finally, it is the power of networking. The opportunity to communicate directly with design masters who are rarely gathered in one place and to share the latest information through forums served as a major draw for participants.

Meanwhile, the DBEW Award is by no means a product of chance. At its core lies the Oriental Culture and Design Research Institute (ODCD), founded by Executive Committee Chair Choi Kyung-ran (Kookmin University). The institute’s two-decade-long dedication to exploring the intrinsic value of design, centered on Asia—specifically Korea, China, and Japan—has expanded into the 2023 DBEW Forum and the 2024 and 2025 DBEW Exhibitions, laying a solid foundation for the DBEW Award.

The Collective Intelligence of Design That Captivated Milan: Voices from the Event

The atmosphere at the awards ceremony was electric from start to finish. There, Andrea Cancellato, Director of the ADI Design Museum, stated, “This award, born out of the MOU signed with Kookmin University last year, is the only model in the world that honors both educators and students. For a museum that has embraced diverse voices from the international design community, forging a bond with Asia is an important milestone.” Jury Chair Paola Antonelli pointed out the tendency to underestimate the dedication of teachers and praised the DBEW Award for bringing to the forefront the noble value of “educators” beyond the professional identity of “designers.” Juror John Takara explained, “Having observed the educational field for decades, I’ve come to realize that its true value lies not in the finished product, but in the ‘dialogue’ that emerges during the process.” He added, “The DBEW Award focuses on ‘diversity,’ does not impose a single correct answer, and comprehensively evaluates how sincerely talents delve into the essence of a problem.”

The lineup of main award winners was equally impressive. The students from the Polytechnic University of Milan, who won the Bronze Award, described their project “ALUA” as “a product ready for immediate deployment in actual industrial settings,” explaining their motivation for applying: “We wanted to have it properly validated, which is why we entered the DBEW Award.” Students from L’École de design Nantes Atlantique, who presented the “Qutisrana” project that won the Silver Prize, attended the awards ceremony alongside Frédéric Degouzon, Director of International Strategy. Frédéric, who encouraged the students to apply for the award, remarked, “The process by which master’s students derive innovative solutions through East-West exchange is an invaluable asset,” and hinted that he would “continue to promote active exchange with the Asian design community.” Ni Xinghao, a Chinese exchange student on the team, reflected, “Having completed my undergraduate studies in China and added a master’s program in France allowed me to take a more multifaceted approach to regional design solutions.”

Students from the Nantes School of Design in France, who won the Silver Award for their “Cutisrana” amphibious workwear project.

The DBEW Award, which concluded successfully, is already gearing up for next year’s competition. Building on this year’s achievements, the event aims to further strengthen collaboration within the global design community. The detailed schedule for next year’s competition and forum will be announced shortly on the official website.

List of Major Winners:

● Gold Award: Baoyi Huang (China) | Supervisor: David Buck (David Buck) | University of Sheffield, UK

Project: Ecological Samsara – Soundscape Transformation of Parkwood Springs

● Silver Prize: Chantal Pisarzowski (Germany) | Advisor: Andreas Ingerl | HTW University of Applied Sciences, Berlin, Germany

Work: Parallaxe – AI as a Mediator in Political Discussions

● Silver Award: Reva Rajgariah (India), Tulsi Nyati (India) | Advisor: Sonal Nigam | Avanti University, India

Project: MaternLink – The Lifeline for Mothers

● Silver Prize: Ni Xinghao (China), Rongwei Yan (China), Du Wang (China) | Advisors: Jaime Bautista and 3 others | Nantes Design School, France

Project Title: CutisRANA – Amphibious Workwear for Future Wetland Life

● In the Bronze Prize category, the “Missing Child Menu” by a team from Sun Moon University in Korea was included. Additionally, the list of Honorable Mentions featured a large number of works by students from major Korean design universities, including Kookmin University, Konkuk University, Seoul National University, University of Seoul, Yonsei University, and Hongik University, demonstrating the competitiveness of K-Design education.

● DBEW Award Official Website: https://www.dbewaward.com

This content is translated from Korean to English using the AI translation service DeepL and may contain translation errors such as jargon/pronouns.

If you find any, please send your feedback to kookminpr@kookmin.ac.kr so we can correct them.

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