Hong Kong Design Centre

Exhibition runs from now  until  6 June at  ELEMENTS

(26 May 2016, Hong Kong) Design has the power to enhance and beautify virtually all aspects of life. Now, members of the public can experience the excellence of Asian design at ELEMENTS, where Hong Kong Design Centre (HKDC) today unveiled HK Design to Connect: DFA Awards  Exhibition. Open for viewing through 6 June at the Water Zone of ELEMENTS, the exhibition features the winners of two major categories in the DFA Awards, namely the “DFA Design for Asia Awards” and “DFA Hong Kong Young Design Talent Award”.

The event marks the inaugural programme of “HK  Design to Connect”, a series organised by HKDC that expands its efforts to engage the community through the power of design. Comprising exhibitions, workshops and other activities, “HK Design to Connect” events will be held in conjunction with a number of like minded community partners at venues throughout Hong Kong. The Corporation’s support for “HK  Design to Connect” exhibition forms part of our wider efforts to connect and contribute to the society under our newly launched Community Connect platform. Both HKDC and MTR said their goal is to hope to nurture and give exposure to emerging local designers while showing citizens how innovative ideas are turned into practical products and services through the creative work of the design industry.

The exhibition also coincides with the entry period for the 2016 “DFA Design for Asia Awards” and “DFA Hong Kong Young Design Talent Award”, which ends on 30 June and 28 June respectively. The DFA Awards are considered one of the most prestigious awards for design excellence. It underpins the role of designers in society, recognises outstanding design projects and local young design talents.

Officiating at the opening ceremony were Mr Jerry Liu, Head of CreateHK; Mr Eric Yim, Chairman of HKDC; Ms Linda So, Corporate Affairs Director of MTR Corporation; and Mr David Tang, Property Director of MTR Corporation.

Mr Jerry Liu, Head of CreateHK said, “The exhibition displays selected winning designs from the “DFA Design for Asia Awards”, to celebrate design projects that improves the livelihood of people in Asia. More importantly, it displays the winning projects and winners’ biographies of the “DFA Hong Kong Young Design Talent Awards”, to fully recognise local young design talents and their creativity potential.”  

Mr Eric Yim, Chairman of HKDC said, “The exhibition marks the inaugural programme of “HK  Design to Connect”, a series organised by HKDC that expands its efforts to engage the community through the power of design and is also the first event that HKDC and MTR Corporation partner together for the series. We both hope to raise the awareness of the importance of design to the society. In the following days, we will continue our partnership to display excellent designs across different locations in Hong Kong”

Mr David Tang, Property Director of MTR Corporation said, “We are very pleased with this collaboration with HKDC because it supports our ongoing efforts to connect with the Hong Kong community through art and design. The MTR Corporation promotes art and culture through our “Community Connect” platform, and will continue to facilitate the staging of art-related activities or displays by emerging Hong Kong artists and designers in our premises.”     

HK Design to Connect: DFA Awards  Exhibition is open to the public and free for viewing. For more information about the DFA Awards, please visit http://www.dfaawards.com/.

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About  Hong Kong Design Centre (HKDC)  

Hong Kong Design  Centre (HKDC) is a non-profit organisation founded in 2002 as a strategic partner of the HKSAR Government in establishing Hong Kong as centre of design excellence in Asia. HKDC pursues its public mission of using design and innovation to drive the value creation of business development and improve the well-being of society by providing diverse exchange platforms, anchored by five major work directions: CONNECT, CELEBRATE, NURTURE, ADVANCE and ENGAGE.

HKDC’s flagship programmes include Business  of Design Week (since 2002) – Asia’s leading annual conference and event on design, innovation and brands; the DFA Awards (since 2003) – the most recognised awards for design from an Asian perspective; the Design  Incubation Programme (since 2012) – a two-year incubation programme that nurtures future design-preneurs; and Knowledge  of Design Week (since 2006) – an annual thematic design knowledge-sharing platform on how design can solve the complex challenges facing our society.

About MTR Corporation  

MTR Corporation is regarded as one of the world’s leading railway operators for safety, reliability, customer service and cost efficiency. In its home base of Hong Kong, the Corporation operates nine commuter railway lines, a Light Rail network and a high-speed Airport Express link on which more than 5.5 million passenger trips are made on a normal week day. Another 5 million passenger trips are made on the rail services it operates outside Hong Kong in the Mainland of China, the United Kingdom, Sweden and Australia. In addition, the Corporation is involved in a range of railway construction projects as well as railway consultancy and contracting services around the world. Leveraging on its railway expertise, the Corporation is involved in the development of transit-related residential and commercial property projects, property management, shopping malls leasing and management, advertising media and telecommunication services.

For more information about MTR Corporation, please visit www.mtr.com.hk.

About “ Community  Connect ” 

As one of the world’s leading railway operators, MTR Corporation not only connects the city of Hong Kong by providing safe, reliable and convenient railway service, but also leverages our skills, resources and networks to contribute to the development of communities, enhance quality of life, and foster a thriving, business and living environment. Through the Community Connect platform, MTR organises a variety of community engagement initiatives that reflect our commitment to the communities that we serve and live in. The Community Connect platform comprises of 3 main areas namely Art and Culture, Community Outreach and Green and Healthy Living.

About DFA Awards

The DFA Awards, through its five major award programmes, has grown in its international influence in Asia. The DFA Lifetime Achievement Award signifies the design community’s respect for individuals who have made life-long contributions to the profession and the society. The DFA Design  Leadership Award recognises business leaders who create sustainable business success through strategic and innovative use of design. The DFA  World’s Outstanding Chinese Designer is a major accolade for designers of Chinese origin with significant design achievement and international recognition. The DFA Design for Asia Awards covers a wide range of design that embodies Asian aesthetics and culture and influences the design trends in Asia and for Asia. The DFA Hong Kong Young Design Talent Award nurtures the development of emerging designers and provides sponsorship for them to undertake work or study overseas. 

For further media enquiries such as media interviews, please contact:

Hong Kong Design Centre, c/o  Golin	MTR Corporation
Clare Chan Senior Manager T: +852 2501 7960 E: cchan2@golin.com	Candy Chu Public Relations Manager – Promotions & Events MTR Corporation Limited T: +852 2993 3856 E: candychu@mtr.com.hk

Photo Reference:

Executives and officiatingguests celebrate the unveiling ceremony of the HK Design to Connect: DFAAwards Exhibition at Elements mall. From left: Ms. Linda So Ka-pik, CorporateAffairs Director, MTR Corporation Ltd; Mr. David Tang Chi-fai, PropertyDirector, MTR Corporation Ltd; Mr. Jerry Liu, Head of CreateHK; Mr. Eric Yim,Chairman of Hong Kong Design Centre

Executives and officiatingguests at the opening ceremony of the HKDesign to Connect: DFA AwardsExhibition at Elements mall. From left: Ms. Betty Leong, Head of InvestmentProperty of MTR Corporation; Ms. Maggie So, General Magazine – CorporateAffairs of MTR Corporation; Ms. Linda So Ka-pik, Corporate Affairs Director,MTR Corporation; Mr. David Tang Chi-fai, Property Director, MTR Corporation; Mr.Jerry Liu, Head of CreateHK; Mr Eric Yim, Chairman of HKDC; Dr Edmund Lee,Executive Director, Hong Kong Design Centre; Ms. Elina Lee, Director,Partnership, Marketing & Communications, Hong Kong Design Centre and MsIsabella Chow, Assistant Director, DFA Awards, Hong Kong Design Centre

Executives and officiating guests at the opening ceremony of the HK Design to Connect: DFA Awards Exhibition at Elements mall.
Back from left: Mr. Bryant Lu, Judge of DFA Hong Kong Young Design Talent Award and Vice Chairman of Ronald Lu & Partners; Dr Edmund Lee, Executive Director, Hong Kong Design Centre
Front from left: Ms. Betty Leong, Head of Investment Property of MTR Corporation; Ms. Maggie So, General Magazine – Corporate Affairs of MTR Corporation; Ms. Elina Lee, Director, Partnership, Marketing & Communications, Hong Kong Design Centre; Ms. Linda So Ka-pik, Corporate Affairs Director, MTR Corporation; Mr. David Tang Chi-fai, Property Director, MTR Corporation; Mr. Jerry Liu, Head of CreateHK; Mr. Eric Yim, Chairman of Hong Kong Design Centre; Mr. Walter Ma, Judge of DFA Design for Asia Awards and Vice Chairman of Hong Kong Fashion Designers Association; Mr. Barney Cheng, Director, Hong Kong Design Centre; Dr. Benson Cheung, Director, Hong Kong Design Centre; Mr. Raymond Au, Judge of DFA Hong Kong Young Design Talent Award; Mr. Cyril Lee, 2015 DFA Hong Kong Young Design Talent Award Awardee; Ms. Connie Lee, 2015 DFA Hong Kong Young Design Talent Award Awardee; Ms. Mazing Lee, Marketing Director, Contact Design Limited and The Contact Store Limited

From left:
Mr. Cyril Lee, 2015 DFA Hong Kong Young Design Talent Award Awardee; Ms. Connie Lee, 2015 DFA Hong Kong Young Design Talent Award Awardee; Ms. Linda So Ka-pik, Corporate Affairs Director, MTR Corporation; Mr. David Tang Chi-fai, Property Director, MTR Corporation; Dr Edmund Lee, Executive Director, Hong Kong Design Centre; Mr. Raymond Au, Judge of DFA Hong Kong Young Design Talent Award; Mr. Walter Ma, Judge of DFA Design for Asia Awards and Vice Chairman of Hong Kong Fashion Designers Association; Mr. Barney Cheng, Director, Hong Kong Design Centre; Ms. Elina Lee, Director, Partnership, Marketing & Communications, Hong Kong Design Centre and guests and media at the docent tour of the exhibition conducted by Dr Edmund Lee, Executive Director, Hong Kong Design Centre.

Ms. Connie Lee, 2015 DFAHong Kong Young Design Talent Award Awardee (left) and Ms. Mazing Lee, Contact DesignLimited and The Contact Store Limited introduce the award-winning project –Innovative Precious Tea Can. 

The exhibition featuresaward-winning projects from Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea,Malaysia, Cambodia, the United States and Italy. Exhibitors include the winnersof the DFA Awards 2015’s Grand Award, Culture Award, Sustainability Award andTechnology Award along with the 2015 Grand Award Finalists. The Exhibition willbe held from today until 6 June.