Press Release
Before the Midnight Hour Furniture Illustrations by Martin Reznik Wins the Golden A' Design Award in Graphics, Illustration and Visual Communication Design
Martin Reznik acknowledged for graphics, illustration and visual communication design by the international grand jury of the 2021 - 2022 A' Design Award & Competition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 28, 2022 /DesignNewswire/ A' Design Award & Competition has confirmed the Golden A' Design Award in the Graphics, Illustration and Visual Communication Design category for Before the Midnight Hour Furniture Illustrations by Martin Reznik, designed for Martin Reznik Illustration. The recognition forms part of the 2021 - 2022 A' Design Award & Competition and was decided 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.
The Golden A' Design Award Explained
The Gold A' Design Award is granted to designs that demonstrate a high level of innovation and a significant impact on their intended audience. Recognized as a major achievement by the A' Design Awards, these designs are characterized by their visionary approach and the exceptional skill of their creators. Winners of the Gold A' Design Award are noted for their ability to push the envelope in art, science, design, and technology, delivering solutions that not only meet but exceed expectations. These designs serve as benchmarks for excellence, encouraging further innovation and inspiring future generations of designers.
More About Before the Midnight Hour Furniture Illustrations
A series of black and white illustrations commissioned by Marc Krusin and featuring his most prominent furniture designs for Knoll and Desalto. Inspired by comics and noir cinema, the project breaks the conventions of furniture illustration by bringing narrative to the scenes, use of exaggerated perspective and a moody noir aesthetic. The lack of human presence and scattered objects add an element of mystery and suspense to the story, while the protagonist is revealed in a surprise ending. All images were drawn digitally in Adobe Photoshop using Wacom Cintiq tablet.
About Martin Reznik
Martin Reznik is a polish-born illustrator. He moved to UK in his early 20s and in 2013 graduated from University of East London with First Class BA (Hons) in Illustration and Printmaking. Multidisciplinary illustrator and graphic designer, confident in both analogue and digital illustration, Martin works with various clients designing packaging, logos, merchandise and editorial. Martin received Communication Arts Award of Excellence 2022, Applied Arts Illustration Award 2022 and Gold, Silver and People’s Choice Awards in Creativepool Annual 2021. He currently lives in Italy.
Award Record
Martin Reznik is a winner of 1 A' Design Award, including this recognition.
About the A' Graphics, Illustration and Visual Communication Design Award
The A' Graphic Design Award is an international graphic design competition recognizing good graphic designs by best creative agencies and designers worldwide. It is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to graphic designers, communication designers, graphic artists and illustrators from all countries. Typical entries include logos, posters, infographics, brochures, packaging designs and business cards. The awarded graphic designs are published at https://dezigners.org/design-category/graphics
About A' Design Award & Competition
Organized annually since 2008, A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The philanthropic mission of the A' Design Award is 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. Nominations are peer reviewed and evaluated anonymously 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. Eligible laureates receive the A' Design Prize, which 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, uploading a work and receiving a 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. More information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://dezigners.org/133798
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/133798
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!133798
- Laureate Profile: https://dezigners.org/d/322211
- Further Information from the Laureate: http://www.martinreznik.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
- Before the Midnight Hour Furniture Illustrations
- Function
- Furniture Illustrations
- Category
- Graphics, Illustration and Visual Communication Design
- Discipline
- Communication Design
- Industry
- Branding & Advertising and Arts
- Colors
- Dark Slate Gray, Silver, Light Gray, Dim Gray and Gray
- Images
- 5
- Client
- Martin Reznik Illustration
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Martin Reznik
- Country
- Italy
- Recognition
- Golden A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2021 - 2022
- Design ID
- #133798
Credits
- Image Credits
- All illustrations: Martin Reznik, 2021
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- Series of illustrations commissioned by furniture designer Marc Krusin for the promotional use on his website and across social media channels and featuring his most prominent furniture designs for Knoll and Desalto. The project brakes the conventions of furniture illustration by bringing a narrative to the scenes, use of exaggerated perspective and a film noir aesthetic. The lack of human presence and scattered objects add an element of mystery. The protagonist is revealed in a surprise ending.
- Inspiration
- Main inspiration for this project were comics and classic French noir cinema. The concept for the first illustration came from a reference photo I received from the client, which was a shot of a chair from behind and at a very low angle. It was very unusual and sparked loads of questions in my head. Being a fan of detective stories I decided to follow this approach in the layout of the image. The first image was crucial in setting the tone for the whole series.
- Research
- Since I have never illustrated furniture before I made few initial sketches based on an online research of the industry trends, but these came out quite dull and rigid. I was not happy with them at all. I decided to go a different way and focus on style and narrative instead. From then on the research involved my favourite films and comic books, noir genre in particular. I decided to recreate its moody atmosphere in my series. The style also justifies unconventional framing of the furniture.
- Challenge
- The client was against any human figures in the scenes, but I could not help but wonder about the smoker missing from the first image. I felt his appearance was important to the story. His silhouette is revealed in an extended version of the 4th illustration, but only as a scroll option on an Instagram post. The client thought this elegant solution added an element of surprise and closure to the story. Each image needed different cropping options to accommodate various socials and screen formats.
- Realization and Technology
- Each illustration was drawn in pen and ink on paper and once approved by the client it was redrawn digitally. I used Adobe Illustrator to construct the furniture and interiors accurately and then Photoshop to apply textures, light and draw other elements using Wacom Cintiq tablet. The images were rendered using black only to recreate film noir aesthetic.
- Operation and Interaction
- The project was initially published on Instagram. The illustrations were posted in regular time intervals. Main interaction with the story comes with the 4th and last illustration, where the viewer is encouraged to reveal the protagonist (the smoker) by using the scroll option on the Instagram post. The unusual approach to furniture illustration in these series ensures the greater impact on the viewers arousing their curiosity about the products and the brand itself.
- Project Duration and Location
- The series was posted on Instagram and LinkedIn starting February 2021 and these posts are still active. The hero banners on client's website run for about 8 months, nearly till the end of 2021.
- Specifications
- The illustrations are mainly used in a digital format online, but they were also designed with art print production in mind. Each square illustration is drawn on 500 x 500mm digital canvas. The images were later combined into a large poster (500 x 700mm) and reproduced as a limited edition screen print.
- Keywords
- illustration, furniture, noir, interior design, comics, digital art, black and white, drawing, architecture, graphic
