Rules
Set of Rules
How?
Do not forget that the main factors are your creativity and originality of your submission. It is great to have an innovative and unusual approach to a solution, but functionality and usage of the material are also really important. Take into account that the environmental compatibility also plays a role in the decision making.
How many?
Number of projects submitted is unlimited. There is no strict theme your work needs to follow, be free to send something you find at home. Applications are for free.
Who?
You can apply as a team or as an individual, whether you’re a student or a novice designer. But you must not be older than 30 years old.
What?
For your work to be accepted, you also have to upload an application. Works completed prior to January 1, 2022 are not eligible for submission. The attachments must include, in addition to the application form, a text document with a brief commentary on the work, a photograph of the work and a poster in the correct format, size and quality according to the rules.
Competition Dates
4. 12. 2023 – Start of the competition
This day marks the start of your opportunity to submit your work. You can become the winner!
4. 2. 2024 – Application deadline
This date should definitely be marked in your diary. Last chance to submit your work!
Meeting of the jury
The meeting of the jury to evaluate the competition proposals will be held in the first quarter of 2024.
May 2024 – Winner announcement
On this day, we will all meet in Zlín for the Best in Design grand finale and find out the winner. The exact date will be specified according to the current situation.
Contest Categories
Product & Industrial Design
Product design, interior and furniture design, tool and machine design, etc.
Fashion Design
Clothing design, textile design, footwear and haberdashery design, jewellery design, etc.
Communication Design
Graphic design and illustration, new media, visual communications and intermedia design, web animations, etc.
Service Design
Complex designs of processes, technologies and interactions that drive provision of services, etc.
Media Award
The title of this category is awarded to one of the semi-finalists of the competition. The winners are nominated by the category judges, who are representatives of the media closely connected with design.
Awards
Main prize
The best one out of all categories will receive the title Best in Design 2024. Holder of the title will ALSO win €1 000.
1st place in each contest category
The author of the first-best work will receive a cash prize in the amount of €500.
2nd place in each contest category
The author of the second-best work will receive a cash prize in the amount of €300.
3rd place in each contest category
The author of the third-best work will receive a cash prize in the amount of €200.
Media Award
The selected designer will receive media support for his work.
Complete rules of Best in Design contest
BEST IN DESIGN 2024
15th year of the international design contest
Zlin Design Week under the auspices of the Tomas Bata University in Zlin announces a public non-anonymous contest
CONTEST INFORMATION
In the past, Zlin city was perceived as a part of the elite in fields of industrial design and innovative technologies. Names of giants of that time such as prof. Zdeněk Kovář or prof. Vincenc Makovský cannot be ignored. Works of designers from Zlin were awarded both domestic and world prizes many times.
We are aware of the fact that Zlin history and tradition are something that should be followed and that quality and creative design are a very important part of today’s world. We would like to continue in supporting the designers of the future, all the young design talents. In order to do so, Zlin Design Week announces this international young design contest, BEST IN DESIGN.
1. OBJECTIVE OF THE CONTEST
1.1. Objective
The main objective of the contest is to award extraordinary design works. Competing works will be evaluated in the following categories:
1. Product & Industrial Design (product design, interior and furniture design, tool and machine design, transportation design, etc.),
2. Fashion Design (clothing design, textile design, footwear and haberdashery design, jewellery design, etc.),
3. Communication Design (graphics and illustration design, new media design, visual communications and intermedia design, web animations, etc.),
4. Service Design (complex designs of processes, technologies and interactions that drive provision of services, etc.).
The bonus category in which the entries will be judged is the Media Award (media category). The title of this category is awarded to one of the semi-finalists of the competition. The winners are nominated by the category judges, who are representatives of the media closely connected with design.
1.2. The contest participants
The contest is available for individuals who turned 30 years before February 4th, 2024 and younger. Contestants can participate both individually and in teams. If a team enters a competition in which only one of the authors is 30 years or younger, the entire project must be registered under that author’s name. This entire team should be mentioned in the entry form’s notes section.
There is no registration fee.
1.3. The contest announcement
The information about the contest will be announced in a press release, published on our website, social media and other relevant media.
1.4. The contest final results announcement
Final results of the contest will be announced publicly by an announcer at the Best in Design 2024 ceremonial announcement, on our website and on social media as well.
1.5. Competing works
Works cannot be submitted to the contest if they were created before January 1st, 2022 or were submitted to the previous years of the contest.
2. DATES REGARDING THE CONTEST
2.1. The contest announcement
The contest announcement will take place on December 4th, 2023.
2.2. The submission deadline – the closing date for the submission of competing works
The closing date for the submission of competition entries is on February 4th, 2024 at 11:59 PM.
2.3. The date of an evaluation meeting of the jury
The date of the jury meeting to evaluate the competition submissions is set for the first quarter of the year 2024.
2.4. The date of an announcement of the contest’s winners
The contest winners will be announced at the ceremonial announcement within the Zlin Design Week. The announcement will take place in May 2024, but conditions may change depending on the current situation. In the case of a change, competitors will be informed in due time.
2.5. The winnings payout period
The period to disburse the winnings is set due to two months since the public announcement of the results of the competition.
3. CONTEST PROPOSAL SUBMISSION
3.1. Admissible methods of submitting the contest proposals
Competing proposals can only be submitted electronically via a form on our website.
3.2. Electronic submission of a competition proposal by a person other than the author
If the competition proposal is submitted by a person other than the author (teacher, etc.), the application form contains the contact details of the author, then the teacher.
4. REQUIRED AND BINDING PARTS OF THE SUBMISSIONS, ITS STRUCTURE, AND GRAPHIC DESIGN
4.1. General requirements of submissions
Every submission consists of two parts: the application and the attachments. Submissions that fail to meet the criteria mentioned below will not be accepted.
4.2. Application
Every participant of the competition has to fill out an electronic application, which is available on our website.
4.3. Attachments
Each submission consists of four correctly named attachments*:
a) Portrait oriented presentation poster measuring 700 × 1,000 mm in .pdf file format (CMYK, 300 dpi quality).
The format of the correct naming of this material looks like this: Name and surname_name of work_poster.pdf.
The template for John Smith and his work called “My Design” looks like this: John Smith_My Design_poster.pdf
b) A text part in English language, which will contain a brief description of the concept – a brief commentary – the author’s intention – an explanation of the basic premises of the competition proposal and how it will be used in practice. The text part has to be submitted in either .pdf, .doc or .txt format.
The format of the correct naming of this material looks like this: Name and surname_name of work_anotace_ENG.doc/.txt/.pdf.
The template for John Smith and his work called “My Design” looks like this: John Smith_My Design_anotace_ENG.doc/.txt/.pdf
c) A representative picture of the submission in .jpg file format (300 dpi quality, minimum size of 1920 x 1080 px), which carries the name of the participant in its title. The maximum number of these photographs is ten.
The format of the correct naming of this material looks like this: Name and surname_name of work_foto1(2;3).jpg.
The template for John Smith and his work called “My Design” looks like this: John Smith_My Design_foto1(2;3).jpg
*The necessity of these attachments may be consulted with the competition organisers upon presentation of compelling arguments.
In the entry form there is an option to insert a link to a disk. If the author wishes to present an animation or a short video for their project, it is possible after consultation with the organiser. This attachment will not serve as a defence, but only as a support file for the presentation of the project.
5. COMMON PROVISIONS ON THE BINDING FEATURES OF A SUBMISSION’S DESIGN ADAPTATION
5.1. Binding parts of the submission
The participants agree that every submission that does not meet the formalities included in this document will be excluded from the competition by the secretary. The secretary will also exclude those parts of the submissions, which have not been required by the competition’s rules.
6. EVALUATION CRITERIA
6.1. Binding criteria of the evaluation
Binding criteria according to which the submission will be judged by the jury are set accordingly:
- author’s creativity and extraordinariness of the submission,
- innovative and original approach of the chosen solution,
- implementation with regard to the choice of materials used, the functionality and the ergonomics,
- the overall quality of the submission and the quality of the design presented,
- the ecological part of the proposed solution and promotion of sustainable development.
The jury reserves the right to refuse any designs with inadequate/insufficient quality, which do not meet the level of our competition.
7. JURY
7.1. Members of the jury
The judges will be announced on the following website and social media by the end of January 2024.
7.2. Awarding process and protocol
The jury will award the work with the highest amount of present judges’ votes. The judges have a right to invite an expert from a given field, who will have an advisory vote. The purpose of this vote is purely advisory and does not count as a judge’s vote. The jury will elect a chairman of the jury before the voting and will appoint a jury’s secretary. A transcript of the jury’s meeting will be made by a person appointed by the chairman of the jury. The transcript will then be approved by a jury’s chairman’s signature. The different opinions of the judges will be included in the transcript if requested by any of the judges.
8. COMPETITION AWARDS
8.1. Financial reward for the winning proposals
The author of the work that will be awarded first place in each category will receive a cash prize of EUR 500 (five hundred euro).
The author of the work that will be awarded second place in each category will receive a cash prize of EUR 300 (three hundred euro).
The author of the work that will be awarded third place in each category will receive a cash prize of EUR 200 (two hundred euro).
8.2. Best in Design Award
The author/group of authors of the best-rated submission will be awarded the “Best in Design 2024” title. This title comes with a cash prize of EUR 1 000 (one thousand euro).
8.3. Special awards and Honorable Mention
The finalists of the competition categories (Product & Industrial Design, Fashion Design, Communication Design and Service Design) and the winners of the bonus Media Award category (media category) exhibit their products as part of the Zlin Design Week festival, based on an agreement with the organiser.
The jury reserves a right to award a special award in the Best in design competition.
The jury also reserves a right to award chosen submissions with an honorable mention.
9. TERMS AND CONDITIONS AGREEMENT CLAUSE
9.1. Contestant’s agreement with terms and conditions
By submitting their work the competitors agree to all terms and conditions of the competition stated by the Organiser as a contract and to the decisions of the competition jury. The jury’s decision is final and thus cannot be appealed or challenged in court.
10. COPYRIGHTS AND SUBMISSIONS PUBLICATION CLAUSE
10.1. Participant’s copyrights
By submitting their competition entries, the competitors give their consent to the Organiser to use the competition entries free of charge for exhibition and publication purposes, to publish the competition entries on the Internet and to publish the contact in accordance with Act No. 106/199 Coll., on free access to information, as amended.
10.2. Permission to use the author’s work for purposes of the contest
Authors of the submissions give the permission to use their author’s works to the Organiser. This permission for the purposes of representing the contest is given for an unlimited time period.
Copyrights of the contestants are not touched in any way.
11. ORGANISER OF THE COMPETITION
The Organiser of the competition is Zlin Design Week under the auspices of Tomas Bata University in Zlin, Univerzitní 2431, ZIP Code: 760 01.
1. 11. 2023 in Zlín
For more information contact eliska.janeckova@zlindesignweek.com
