The winners of the AURA Crea "TRANSFORM: Interfaces of the Future" Competition, conducted in collaboration with SAMET, a world-renowned furniture technical accessory manufacturer known for its functional and design-focused solutions, and Istanbul Academy of Architecture and Urban Studies - AURA Istanbul, have been announced.
Supported by SAMET, Turkey's leading and one of the world's largest manufacturers of furniture technical accessories, known for its design and production philosophy aimed at making users' lives more comfortable and of higher quality, the participants in the competition created designs that focus on the theme "Transform." This theme was based on the interaction and movement of SAMET products, enabling the transformation of space and the elements and objects that constitute it.
The competition, in which 18 young architects and designers from the AURA Istanbul 2022 Spring Certificate Program participated, began with a workshop conducted by Pınar Uçkan, SAMET's Deputy General Manager of Marketing. In the seminar, which featured SAMET's design and innovation marvels such as the Multi-Mech Mechanical Dual Lift System and Flowbox Drawer Systems, Pınar Uçkan emphasized how the design and innovation passion is the only way to increase the quality and comfort of our living spaces by addressing many elements that often go unnoticed.
Following the workshop, participants showcased their project productions using SAMET products for the purpose of "creating the tools and interfaces for transforming one form into another." The exhibition, attended by jury members, SAMET officials, and members of the AURA Istanbul Board of Directors, marked the end of the workshop.
After the project presentations at AURA Istanbul, two projects were awarded the Achievement Award based on the evaluation by the jury members. The project "Kuşluk" designed by Hilal Bozkurt and Yasemen Cemre Gürbüz took the first place, while the project "Gökyüzünden Yerdeki Çukura" designed by Burak Avcıoğlu and Selen Erdoğan secured the second place. SAMET will reward the members of these two successful groups with a trip to the Paris Maison Object Fair, based on the evaluation by the jury members. The Jury Special Award went to the project "Urban Interfaces as New Public Spaces" designed by Ayça Atay and Ege Ak, and the project "Ekpyrosis: Endless Beginning, Middle, and End" designed by İnci Sağırbaş and Berra Nur Bay. Members of these two selected groups will receive an Apple iPad and Smart Pen as gifts from SAMET.
The competition jury included the following names:
Atilla Kuzu (Interior Architect / Zoom TPU)
Celal Abdi Güzer (CAA Architecture, Prof. Dr. ODTÜ)
Durmuş Dilekçi (Architect / Dilekçi Architecture, İSMD)
Deniz Ova (General Manager / SALT),
Ömer Emre Yavuz (Assoc. Prof. MSGSÜ / Sculpture Department),
Serhat Kiraz (Artist-Painter),
Pınar Uçkan (Deputy General Manager of Marketing / SAMET)
