Press Release
Ruya Akyol Receives the Silver A' Design Award for Desen Coffee Table in Furniture Design
Ruya Akyol recognized for furniture design by the international grand jury of the 2024 - 2025 A' Design Award & Competition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 22, 2025 /DesignNewswire/ Desen Coffee Table by Ruya Akyol has been granted the Silver A' Design Award in the Furniture Design category, A' Design Award & Competition has announced. The result belongs to the 2024 - 2025 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 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.
More About Desen Coffee Table
Desen, a modular coffee table collection inspired by traditional Mediterranean tile geometries, features two shapes of varying heights that permit numerous configurations and evoke an architectural aesthetic. Designed for individual use or as part of a larger composition, the collection balances functional practicality with sculptural form. Recessed tops offer practical surface areas while hollow interiors enhance material efficiency. Constructed from locally sourced marbles, Desen presents natural richness and texture, merging traditional influences with contemporary design principles.
About Ruya Akyol
Rüya Akyol, completed her education at Istanbul Technical University, Politecnico di Milano and Domus Academy with honors in Industrial Design and Communication Design. She worked with Claudio Bellini in Milan and Philippe Starck in Paris as a designer and studio director for many years before she established her own practice. As a Milan based designer and consultant, she provides product, furniture, and spatial design, as well as brand identity and art direction services. The holistic design approach that she embraces, creates homogeneous and clear brand identities. The designer's style is a synthesis of contemporary Italian and minimalist Scandinavian.
Award Record
Ruya Akyol is a winner of 3 A' Design Awards, including this recognition. The awards were granted between the 2023 - 2024 and the 2024 - 2025 editions of the A' Design Award & Competition.
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/167703
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/167703
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!167703
- Laureate Profile: https://dezigners.org/d/351026
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
- Desen Coffee Table
- Function
- Coffee Table
- Category
- Furniture Design
- Discipline
- Industrial Design
- Industry
- Furniture & Home
- Colors
- Dark Slate Gray, Silver, Dim Gray, Dark Gray and Gainsboro
- Images
- 5
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Ruya Akyol
- Country
- Italy
- Recognition
- Silver A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2024 - 2025
- Design ID
- #167703
Credits
- Image Credits
- Halit Besli
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- Desen is a collection of modular coffee tables composed of interlocking shapes with varying heights, allowing endless combinations. Each piece functions beautifully on its own or as part of a larger composition, offering dynamic architectural aesthetics. The recessed tops provide practical surfaces, while the hollow interiors reduce material waste. Locally sourced marbles add natural richness and texture.
- Inspiration
- Desen draws inspiration from Mediterranean motifs and traditional tile patterns, reimagined through a contemporary lens. The design reflects extensive research into historical ornamentation, showcasing how geometric forms and intricate details can create timeless elegance in modern interiors.
- Research
- The design process involved extensive research into Ottoman art and Islamic geometric patterns, referencing works like Cartier and Islamic Arts. This study of historical motifs helped reinterpret traditional forms into modern, functional pieces. The research highlighted the timeless appeal of symmetry and repetition, inspiring Desen’s modular, combinable design that brings cultural richness into contemporary living.
- Challenge
- The challenge was to create iconic tables that are functional both individually and as part of a set. Achieving a puzzle-like aesthetic without compromising the tables’ standalone integrity required in-depth graphic design exploration. Balancing three different heights to serve varied needs while maintaining aesthetic harmony was equally demanding, pushing the boundaries of modular table design.
- Realization and Technology
- Desen tables are crafted from responsibly sourced Turkish marbles, including Travertine, Karaman Beige, Kale Bordeaux, and Afyon White. The shapes are precision-cut and hollowed to reduce weight without compromising structural integrity. The recessed surface details are carefully milled to ensure both visual elegance and functional stability for objects placed on top.
- Operation and Interaction
- Desen tables are designed for flexible use. Their puzzle-like forms allow users to arrange them in countless ways whether as standalone side tables, combined coffee tables, or layered compositions at varying heights. The recessed surfaces secure items like cups and decor, while the lightweight, hollow design makes rearranging effortless for dynamic spaces.
- Project Duration and Location
- The project started in September 2023 and will be presented at Salone Satellite in April 2025 during Salone del Mobile. The pieces are getting produced in Turkey to be presented in Italy.
- Specifications
- Small Height 350 x Width 400 x Depth 400 mm Medium Height 400 x Width 400 x Depth 400 mm Tall Height 450 x Width 400 x Depth 400 mm
- Keywords
- coffee tables, pattern, luxury, marble, side tables, iconic, tiles, architectural, contemporary, elegant
