AIGA Winterhouse Writing Awards 2008

“I am nearly the same age as the mini-mall. And though lovers of cities will weep for me, I must admit that much of my life has been spent — not at the mall, as you might expect of a girl San Fernando Valley-raised — but at the local mini-mall…”
Jade Chang, Winner, Winterhouse Writing Award 2007

“While many of design’s most powerful practitioners advocate more writing and research, these designers (and the “larger” graphic design establishment) often undermine such advocacy due to their own suspicion of academia and ambivalence toward critical theory…”
Erica Nooney, Winner, Winterhouse Student Writing Award 2007

The AIGA Winterhouse Awards for Design Writing & Criticism seek to increase the understanding and appreciation of design, both within the profession and throughout American life. A program of AIGA, these annual awards have been founded by Jessica Helfand and William Drenttel of the Winterhouse Institute to recognize excellence in writing about design and encourage the development of young voices in design writing, commentary and criticism. Submissions for the 2008 awards are due before June 2, 2008. Here’s how to apply for the two awards.

Writing Award of $10,000
Open to writers, critics, scholars, historians, journalists and designers and given for a body of work.

Education Award of $1,000
Open to students (high school, undergraduate or graduate) whose use of writing, in the interest of making visual work or scholarship or cultural observation, demonstrates extraordinary originality and promise.

This awards program is part of a larger AIGA initiative to stimulate new levels of design awareness and critical thinking about design. The 2008 awards will be announced in August and presented at the AIGA Design Legends Gala on September 18 in New York City.

Jury for 2008 Awards
Jessica Helfand, Chair
Michael Bierut, designer and partner, Pentagram
Kevin Lippert, publisher, Princeton Architectural Press
Judith Thurman, cultural critic and staff writer, The New Yorker

Benefactors for 2008 Awards
The 2008 awards are made possible, in part, by the generous contributions of those listed below. To make a contribution, please email writingawards(at)aiga.org.

Individuals & Institutions
Sean Adams
AIGA
Art Center College of Design
Michael Bierut
Sheila Levrant de Bretteville
Carnegie Mellon University School of Design
Brian Collins
Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum
The Cooper Union Herb Lubalin Center
Meredith Davis
Alexander Gorlin Architects
Jessica Helfand & William Drenttel
Steven Heller
IDEO
Institute of Design at Illinois Institute of Technology
Ellen Lupton & Abbott Miller
Debbie Millman
MIT School of Architecture & Planning
Clement Mok
Errol Morris
Murray Moss
North Carolina State University Graphic Design Department
Northeastern University Department of Visual Arts
Bruce Nussbaum
Parsons The New School for Design
Princeton Architectural Press
Chris Pullman
Rhode Island School of Design
Rockwell Group
Anthony Russell
School of Visual Arts
Snøhetta
Society of Publication Designers
Syracuse University Goldring Arts Journalism Program
2×4
Two Twelve Associates
University of Minnesota Design Institute
Rick Valicenti
Michael Vanderbyl
Lella & Massimo Vignelli
Armin Vit & Bryony Gomez-Palacio
Walker Art Center
Weisz + Yoes Architecture
Barbara Wiedemann
Lorraine Wild