Fuma Fujiwara Is Honored with the Silver A' Design Award for Layer Stool in Furniture Design

Fuma Fujiwara honored for furniture design by the international grand jury of the 2022 - 2023 A' Design Award & Competition

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

COMO, Italy, April 20, 2023 /DesignNewswire/ A' Design Award & Competition has announced that Layer Stool by Fuma Fujiwara, designed for Fujiwara Fuma, has been granted the Silver A' Design Award in the Furniture Design category. The result belongs to the 2022 - 2023 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 scored anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.

The Silver A' Design Award Explained

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.

Regarding Layer Stool

The project started with making furniture out of small-diameter trees and scrap wood. Wood in Okinawa is felled due to natural disasters and road expansion. However, in recent years, road expansion has decreased due to environmental considerations, so wood is also shrinking. To continue making Okinawa furniture, it was necessary to use small materials. Therefore, the Layer stool were created by combining various types of wood. It is made from upcycled waste. This design proposes a new value by reconstructing the waste material from Okinawan wood into blocks.

About Fuma Fujiwara

Fuma Fujiwara is a young designer based in Okinawa. He was born in Shiga Prefecture, on the mainland of Japan, in October 2001. In his 18th year, he moved to Okinawa, Japan's southernmost island group. Okinawa Prefecture is a Japanese city with beautiful nature and folk culture. He studied design in beautiful nature. He creates products with a background in Japanese nature and culture. His mission is to convey the nature and culture of Japan to as many people as possible. Recently in Tokyo, he presented furniture made from materials unique to Okinawa. Next, he will send out new discoveries to the world.

Award Record

This recognition makes Fuma Fujiwara a winner of 1 A' Design Award.

About the A' Furniture Design Award

The A' Furniture Design Award is an international furniture competition recognizing good furniture designs by best furniture designers worldwide. It is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to furniture designers, product designers, industrial design studios and furniture brands from all countries. Typical entries include chairs, tables, sofas, beds, cabinets and shelves. The awarded furniture designs are published at https://dezigners.org/design-category/furniture

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/150916
A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/150916
Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!150916
Laureate Profile: https://dezigners.org/d/344217

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: Layer Stool
Function: Stool
Category: Furniture Design
Discipline: Industrial Design
Industry: Furniture & Home
Colors: Ghost White, Sienna, Light Gray, Silver and Saddle Brown
Images: 5
Client: Fujiwara Fuma

The Recognition

Laureate: Fuma Fujiwara
Country: Japan
Recognition: Silver A' Design Award
Edition: 2022 - 2023
Design ID: #150916

Credits

Image Credits: [; Photographer Fuma Fujiwara, Layer Stool, 2023] [; Photographer Fuma Fujiwara, Layer Stool, 2023]

Design Details

Unique Properties: This project used small-diameter trees and scrap wood to make furniture. Wood in Okinawa is felled due to natural disasters and road expansion. Large pieces of wood are needed to make furniture. Therefore, I made woodcuts by combining a wide variety of woods. They are made by upcycling discarded materials. This design proposes a new value for the colorful "Okinawa tree".
Inspiration: I live in Okinawa, an island in the south of Japan. Okinawa is known as the only subtropical region in Japan and has unique vegetation and culture. Many kinds of trees live on the island. Many types of trees are unique to the island, and I was surprised that there were many characteristic features, such as the trees color, smell, and texture. I made this furniture using nine kinds of Okinawan trees to let people know about Okinawan trees.
Research: Okinawa is Japan's southernmost archipelago and was once called the Ryukyu Kingdom. Okinawa has long had a different culture from Japan's main island, and other types of wood have been used. Twenty years ago, trees with large diameters were circulating in Okinawa, but recently the diameter of the trees in circulation is about 35 centimeters, and the material is shrinking. Finding a way to utilize small materials was necessary to sustain Okinawan furniture production, so the research began.
Challenge: Layers are created by stacking trees. Those layers are usually horizontal. To show all the trees on the surface, I was inspired to express this by making the layers slanted. Creating the diagonal layers was the most challenging part. The diagonal layers created beautiful curves. I also tried to find a way to combine light and dark colors in the wood combination.
Realization and Technology: To continue making Okinawan furniture, we need a way to use materials without waste. Therefore, we collected small pieces of wood and trees with small diameters discarded at lumber shops and workshops. Seat : Camphor tree, Melia azedarach, Magnolia compressa, Castanopsis sieboldii, Acacia confusa, Pinus luchuensis, Tetradium glabrifolium, Trema orientalis, Podocarpus macrophyllus. Legs : Acacia confusa. Finish: beeswax.
Operation and Interaction: The hand-carved seat has a gentle slope. The indentation in the center of the chair gently fits your waist. The seat and legs of the chair can be disassembled. It is compact and portable and can be transported in flat-pack packaging. When assembling, it can be manufactured immediately just by inserting the legs.
Project Duration and Location: The project started in Okinawa in January 2023. The first deliverable was completed in March 2023 and exhibited at the Tokyo International Furniture Fair (IFFT).
Specifications: Width 640 mm x Depth 380 mm x Height 500 mm
Keywords: stool, furniture, Okinawa, End material