Have you created a fabulous trade show exhibition design lately? If so, you should let the world see it! Exhibition Magazine’s 23rd Annual Exhibit Design Awards is accepting entries.

Designs that were launched between Dec. 1, 2006, and Dec. 1, 2008, can be entered in several categories, which include categories: Green Exhibits (designs that reduce the negative impact on the environment, as realized through sustainability, eco-friendly or recycled materials, and/or a reduction of energy consumption.) Elements and Details (Innovative elements or materials that are part of a larger exhibit. Look here for examples) and Small Budgets and Small Spaces (Custom exhibits measuring 10-by-10 or 10-by-20 feet with a budget of $15,000 or less.)

The 2009 competition will offer one EDGE Award (for Exhibit Design and Graphic Excellence) and multiple Gold, Silver, and Special Merit Awards. Winners will be featured in the May issue of EXHIBITOR magazine, read by 30,000 marketing professionals in the trade show, corporate event, and meetings industries. To apply and find out more go the magazine’s web site.

It seems like Obama’s supporters are determined to make him go down in history as the candidate with the hippest signage ever. (Or perhaps the recent decline in enthusiasm among young voters is making them nervous.) Design and graffiti legend Shepard Fairey has teamed up with artist-designed t-shirt peddlers Upper Playground and Move On to host the “Manifest Hope Art Gallery” at the Democratic National Convention. The gallery, open from Sunday, August 24 through Thursday, August 28 2008, will feature both known and new artists all supporting Barack Obama for President. Moreover, should you feel so inclined, your work can be a part of this project. The groups also launched a related contest today, calling for entries of visual art from grassroots supporters of Senator Obama. (more…)

Designboom, together with partners DA Design Association of Japan and Tobu Department Store, is calling for entries for their international Green Earth graphic design competition. The competition is divided in two themes, and you may enter projects in one or both categories. The first theme is called ‘Green’ and competitors are asked to create a graphic artwork that illustrates environmental protection and how human beings and nature could coexist in a greener world. The second theme ‘Earth’ is based on the idea of giving the gift of a greener world at Christmas. Entries should be a graphic artwork that creates a link between this festive time of year and a call to help our planet’s survival. Use of iconic Christmas motifs such as rein deers and trees are allowed and encouraged.
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The British Council’s initiative Creative Economy, which aims to help establish global networks in creative fields, is announcing the launch of its new UK Young Design Entrepreneur award. The purpose of the award is to create networks between young design entrepreneurs and the design industry in emerging economies. The three finalists of 2008 will travel to India to meet leading industry figures and participate in meetings, tours, talks and workshops with the goal of establishing future collaborations. (more…)

This is a last minute call for HOW’s 10th annual Interactive Design Awards.

The competition is open to all designers from anywhere in the world. Any interactive, interface or motion designs for the web, for kiosks, for broadcast or for use on Macintosh or Windows platforms, including CD-ROMs and DVDs, are eligible. Projects created between January 1, 2007 and July 15, 2008 are eligible. Entries will be accepted in 12 categories including the new In-House category.

The competition’s Best of Show winner will be profiled in HOW’s 2009 International Design Annual and will win a trip to the 2009 HOW Design Conference. All winning entries will be featured in the International Design Annual, and some may be showcased on the HOW website. Entry fees are as follows: $75 Regular Entry and $50 Student Entry. Entries must be postmarked by July 15, 2008. Late entries will be accepted until August 1, 2008.

For more information, rules and official entry form, visit here or send an email to how-competition@fwpubs.com.

A still from the “Hands” campaign for Hewlett-Packard, the 2007 first-place winner. AGENCY: Goodby, Silverstein & Partners; DESIGN FIRM: Motion Theory.

We know the submissions deadline is not until November, but it’s never too early to give yourself a head start for PRINT magazine’s prestigious Creativity + Commerce: The International Business Graphics competition. Some of the reasons to enter: you would be awarded serious bragging rights, your work would be displayed in a special section in the October 2009 issue of PRINT and there are cash prizes totaling $9000.

Submitted work must have been produced between July 1, 2007 and November 1, 2008, and should fall within print graphics and interactive/motion categories. Enter here

In the meantime, we can look forward to the announcement of the 2008 winners in October and read about last year’s winners here

With just a few weeks left until deadline, we want to remind you of our sister blog Notes on Game Dev’s 3D Environment and Character Design Competition. It’s a wonderful opportunity for artists who want to break into the industry to get their work seen and evaluated by some the top talent in game development today including Damian Pannell (Artist, Relic, Vancouver, British Columbia), Doug Oglesby (Concept Artist, Red Storm Entertainment), Jesse Brophy (THQ, Phoenix, AZ), and Nate Purkeypile (World Artist, Bethesda).

Winners and runners up will be announced in the Notes on Game Dev and Notes on Design Blogs and in our respective newsletters which include 40,000 global subscribers. Winners will also be announced on GameCareerGuide.com, the leading portal site for game career seekers and industry recruitment.

Excellent prizes for winners include a full Game Art Certificate Program from Sessions Online Schools of Game Art, a broad choice of instructor-led game art and animation classes, membership in IGDA, and subscriptions to Game Developer Magazine.

Deadline is June 15.

It’s time for HOW’s International Design Awards again, so send in your best posters, logos and letterheads to possibly win a free trip to the next HOW conference.

All winners will be featured in HOW’s prestigious April 2009 International Design Annual issue, get $100 discount to the 2009 HOW Design Conference and receive a ‘nifty’ certificate (their word, not ours). However, one Best of Show winner (or winners if you have collaborators) score a free trip to the 2009 HOW Design Conference, which includes round-trip airfare, hotel room and conference registration. You will also feel like a rock star when you are presented with your award at the conference.

The deadline is September 1st. To register click here

It’s time for the prestigious Red Dot Communications Awards again! The competition, which is organized by the renowned German design institute Design Zentrum Nordrhein Westfalen in Essen, is calling for designers, advertising agencies and clients of communication designers from all over the world to submit their entries. The communication award was launched in 1993 and the winners are awarded for outstanding achievements in the fields of corporate design, advertising, interactive media or sound design. However, competition is fierce: in 2007 there were over 3800 submissions from 60 countries and 336 winning entries. (more…)

This competition is about more than creating great design concept; it’s about creating an end to extreme poverty. Design 21 calls for the design of a web based campaign for the non-profit organization Millenium Promise that promotes public awareness of the Millennium Development Goals (the UN declaration to address extreme poverty that was signed by 189 world leaders in 2000). The aim of the campaign is to prompt the general public to do what they can to support the cause and urge their leaders to stick to their commitment to the Millennium Development Goals.

Design 21 – The Social Design Network, is a non-profit organization and Unesco partner that promotes design that addresses social issues by creating networks between designers, non-profits and corporations. Read an interview with Design and Content manager Jacqueline Khiu here

Millennium Promise is a non-profit organization working to end extreme poverty. Their mission is to achieve the MDGs in Africa by 2015, working with the belief that for the first time in history our generation has the opportunity to end extreme poverty, hunger and disease.

Competition closes June 17, 2008
First prize: $5000

http://www.design21sdn.com/competitions/13