Fresh Graduates Made These Designs for Top Furniture Exporters
In a bold move by the Design Center of the Philippines, 15 new graduates underwent a unique training program in furniture and accessories design
When you’ve just completed a course in interior or industrial design, it could take years before your own original creation would hit the market. Factor in a year or two in apprenticeship and perhaps five years in a big design firm before striking out on your own. An exhibit of your work would probably come much later.
But recently, the Design Center of the Philippines launched a New Design Graduates Training (NGDT) Program, condensing the entire process into just 16 months—yes, you read that right! Fifteen fresh design graduates from College of Saint Benilde SDA, University of Santo Tomas, and University of the Philippines, among other schools, underwent mentorship under internationally renowned designers Tony Gonzales and Josef Crisanto.
The NGDT has three phases: Incubation, which focuses on strengthening the participants’ orientation towards design fundamentals; Apprenticeship, where they will apprentice with select design companies in the country, and Atelier, where the graduates will undergo actual design practice in a design firm.
“We are extremely proud to see our first batch of designers move on to the next phase of the NDGT,” says Crisanto. “Our mission is to groom emerging designers to become the future influencers of the Philippine design industry.”
The culmination of the first phase is the exhibition of the works of the 15 young designers in “Edit: Objects Reimagined,” where they re-created furnishings and decorative accessories with famous Philippine exporters such as Calfurn, Industria, Maze, Prizmic & Brill, and CSM Collection. Here are some of the graduates' standout pieces:
You can view the exhibit at the Design Center of the Philippines Building, CCP Complex, Roxas Blvd., Pasay City.
