Back row (L-R):Mr Astley Ng (Singapore); Mr Horace Pan (Hong Kong); Mr Michael  Pizarro (Philippines); ArKazuma Yamao (Japan)
Front row (L-R): Mr Keat Ong (Singapore & China); Ar Ezumi Ismail (Malaysia); Mr Wee Siew Kim, Chief Executive Officer of NIPSEA Group; MsLea Avilani Aziz (Indonesia); Ms Vipavadee Patpongpibul(Thailand); Ar Siritip Harntaweewongsa (Thailand) and Ms Teri Choong, Director of Corporate Affairs of NIPSEA Group

NIPSEA Group, known throughout Asia as Nippon Paint, has officially appointed an independent advisory panel for its maiden Asia Young Designer Awards Council 2019/20 (‘AYDA Council’). The Council comprises of 9 renowned industry experts within the Architecture and Interior Design fields as well as sustainability consultants and academics alike.   

The newly appointed AYDA Council comprises of Mr Astley Ng, Regional Creative Director of SC+DC PTE LTD (Singapore); Mr Horace Pan, Founder of Panaroma (Hong Kong); Mr Michael Pizarro, Principal Interior Designer of Michael Pizarro Interior Design (Philippines); Ar KazumaYamao, Founding Partner of GINGRICH (Japan); Mr Keat Ong, Founder of Nota Design Group and President of Society of Interior Designers, Singapore (Singapore & China); Ar Ezumi Ismail, Director of ARKITEK MAA SDN BHD and President of Malaysian Institute of Architects (Malaysia);Ms Lea Avilani Aziz, President Director/Principal of PT Elenbee Cipta Desain (Indonesia);Ms Vipavadee Patpongpibul, Founder & CEO of P49 Deesign & Associates Co. Ltd as well as Ar Siritip Harntaweewongsa, Co-Founder & Sustainable Design Director of Green Dwell, who are both from Thailand. 

Hailing from various Asian markets, the appointment of the AYDA Council marks a significant milestone for the Asia Young Designer Awards (AYDA) as it further elevates the programme to greater heights by providing strategic direction and counsel, with the aim of creating a positive impact amongst the communities and its participants.

During the duration of the appointment, the AYDA Council will play an active role in establishing and growing the programmeleveraging on their expertise and experiences in their respective fields. Further to that, the input from the council members will also focus on elevating the profiles of young design talents, paving way for them to be nurtured as innovative, confident leaders of the future. 

“Working alongside the local and regional mentors, the AYDA Council aims to spark greater interest amongst the relevant industries to further grow and cultivate the younger generation of up and coming aspiring architects and interior designers alike. Over the years, I’m proud to say that many AYDA Alumni have progressed to becoming reputable architects and interior designers in their field - from being attached to globally-recognized architectural firms to taking on leadership roles in self-established firms. Indeed, Asia Young Designer Awards has grown from strength to strength in the last 10 years. What’s different this year onwards is our strategic decision to form an AYDA Council,” shared Mr Wee Siew Kim, Chief Executive Officer of NIPSEA Group. 

In April 2018, Nippon Paint partnered with the Harvard University Graduate School of Design (‘GSD’) to establish the Gennosuke Obata Fellowship Fund which provides financial aid to GSD students from Asian countries, helping to attract, enroll, and support talented design scholars from the region as they work to become leaders in transforming the social and built environment. Nippon Paint’s gift of USD300,000to establish The Gennosuke Obata Fellowship Fund includes an additional program for the Regional Winners of AYDA - rewarding both winners from the Architecture and Interior Design categories with a 6 week all-expense paid for Design Discovery program where they will have the privilege to learn and experience intensive studio work, lectures, workshops and field trips. 

“The AYDA Council will have a strong voice in nurturing the personal development for budding architects and designers in Asia, demonstrating how design can change lives, positively impact the environment and landscape while addressing important issues such as sustainability and deployability specifically in low-income nations. For the upcoming editions of AYDA, we are looking to create more exciting and relevant competition themes whilst enriching their experiences further throughout their AYDA journey,” he added.

Spearheaded by Nippon Paint in 2008, AYDA is now one of Asia’s most renowned design award which serves as a platform for architecture and interior design students to showcase their boundless creativity and innovative ideas. It was extended to Sri Lankan students of architecture and interior design from year 2016 as a result of the initiative taken by Nippon Paint Lanka (Pvt) Ltd. The initiative has been hailed by Sri Lanka Institute of Architects (SLIA) and academic institutions involved in Architecture and Interior Designing due to the advantage afforded to Sri Lankan students in terms of the exposure and opportunity to compete and prove their calibre against world-class competitors.

Understanding the need to create a platform for students to better understand the Architecture and Interior Design industry as a whole, AYDA presents participants with a once-in-a lifetime opportunity to further develop their skills through experiences such as networking and workshop sessions with renowned industry professionals and like-minded individuals. More than that, AYDA participants are able to unleash their fullest potential when presenting their final showcase of ideas to a panel of esteemed judges who share the same passion for creativity and design. 

To date, AYDA has received more than 7,000 entries from over 600 universities in 15 different regions in Asia. Previously, AYDA had also bagged the Silver award under the Corporate Social Responsibility category in the highly-acclaimed Malaysia PR Awards 2016/17 by the Public Relations Consultants' Association of Malaysia (PRCA Malaysia).

The competition theme for AYDA 2018/19, "FORWARD: Challenging Design Boundaries" pushes young talents to think ahead beyond the perimeters of design, with the aim to push the envelope of creativity through various means of disruptions; be it new-edge technology or a non-existent sustainability. 

AYDA 2018/19 is now open for submissions until October 31, 2018. Sri Lankan students in Architecture and Interior Designing could receive more information or download the entry bookletby logging on to www.asiayoungdesigneraward.lk