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DesignNewswire · COMO, Italy ·

Note Bench by Bulent Unal Is Granted the Bronze A' Design Award in Street Furniture Design

Bulent Unal acknowledged for street furniture design by the international grand jury of the 2020 - 2021 A' Design Award & Competition

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

COMO, Italy, April 23, 2021 /DesignNewswire/ Note Bench by Bulent Unal, designed for Atılım University, has been granted the Bronze A' Design Award in the Street Furniture Design category, A' Design Award & Competition has announced. The recognition forms part of the 2020 - 2021 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 scored anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.

The Bronze A' Design Award Explained

The Bronze A' Design Award is given to outstanding designs that showcase a high degree of creativity and practicality. It recognizes the dedication and skill of designers who produce work that stands out for its thoughtful development and innovative use of materials and technology. These designs are acknowledged for their professional execution and potential to influence industry standards positively. Winning this award highlights the designer's ability to blend form and function effectively, offering solutions that enhance people's lives and wellbeing.

About Note Bench

It is a bench designed for open public spaces. The covers on it can rotate on their own axis. In this way, two different colors are used and the top surface of the bench becomes suitable for the use of a text or pattern. The top surface of the bench is a surface consisting of 7x27 circles. This surface provides a writing or drawing area for people to leave notes, draw figures and express their feelings, even if temporarily.

About Bulent Unal

I am an industrial product designer who combines design education and practice and is active in both academic and professional fields. I work as a department head and associate professor at a university, developing social benefit-oriented projects such as sustainability, disaster housing and disadvantaged groups. I work with interdisciplinary teams, prepare content that will inspire my students and encourage them to think innovatively. I have won design awards, conducted academic research, and prioritised quality and accessibility in education. My approach that blends creativity, the ability to produce solutions and social sensitivity makes me interesting.

Award Record

With this recognition, Bulent Unal is a winner of 9 A' Design Awards. The awards span the editions from 2016 - 2017 to 2020 - 2021 of the A' Design Award & Competition.

About the A' Street and City Furniture Design Award

The A' Street Furniture Design Award is an international design competition recognizing good street furniture designs by leading designers and brands worldwide. The competition is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to street furniture designers, industrial design studios, street furniture brands and street furniture manufacturers from all countries. Entries typically include benches, bollards, bus shelters, bicycle racks, litter bins and planters. Awarded street furniture designs are published at https://dezigners.org/design-category/street-furniture

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

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
Note Bench
Function
Bench
Category
Street Furniture Design
Discipline
Industrial Design
Industry
Architecture and Social Impact
Colors
Dark Gray, Gray, Silver, Dark Slate Gray and Dim Gray
Images
5
Client
Atılım University

The Recognition

Laureate
Bulent Unal
Country
Turkiye
Recognition
Bronze A' Design Award
Edition
2020 - 2021
Design ID
#116442

Credits

Team
Bülent Ünal
Image Credits
3D Visualization Bulent Unal, 2020.

Design Details

Unique Properties
It is a bench designed for open public spaces. The covers on it can rotate on their own axis. In this way, two different colors are used and the top surface of the bench becomes suitable for the use of a text or pattern. The top surface of the bench is a surface consisting of 7x27 circles. This surface provides a writing or drawing area for people to leave notes, draw figures and express their feelings, even if temporarily.
Inspiration
In daily life, we often pass by city furniture in parks, streets and shopping malls. None of them carry a memorable message. However, they can be a medium to convey the creative feelings and thoughts in people. A message or image to be created on the designed benches can turn into a value that you will not forget all day long and even want to take a photo and share it with your friends on social media.
Research
Urban furniture can meet functions such as finding directions, sitting, resting, waiting, and collecting waste. In this design, research has been done on how urban furniture enables socialization. Socialization is of great importance for human life and daily life experience. Everyday objects will also affect the behavior of city people. It has been investigated that urban furniture contributes to the communication environment by carrying notifications-manifestos in different sizes.
Challenge
Apart from being able to sit on the bank, it can be included in social communication and changing the city's monotonous visual identity a little bit, making daily differences, creating memorable scenes formed the creative idea of this work.
Realization and Technology
This bench is made of stainless steel that is used as a suitable material for outdoor use. 7x27 spaces are left on the upper surface. Covers that can rotate on its own axis are placed in these spaces in a pipe. The two sides of these covers will be painted in different colors. Electrostatic paint is recommended as technique. The benches are designed in two colors. One color can be used for one side of the body and covers, the other for the inner face of the body and the other side of the covers.
Operation and Interaction
There are 7 rows and 27 columns on the upper surface of the bench. These covers can be rotated by the user. The person can design a text or visual on this surface by simply rotating it with his finger. Rain water will not accumulate on the bench as the covers can rotate freely. Even after the rain, randomly formed patterns can emerge and change the color texture of the place where they are.
Project Duration and Location
The idea of designing a bank began in September 2019, and the project finished in December 2020.
Specifications
The bench is 45 cm above the ground. Sitting area 150 cm. x 50 cm. in size. A total of 189 rotating covers consisting of 7 rows and 27 columns are placed on it.
Keywords
bank, note, outdoor, media, social life, memories, furniture

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