Student's wing chair wins Project UDesign contest
Century Furniture will produce Ryland Quillen's design
Furniture Today Staff -- Furniture Today, October 20, 2010
Ryland Quillen's wing chair wins Project UDesign contest
HIGH POINT - Savannah College of Art and Design student Ryland Quillen and his unconventional Alifair wing chair have won Project UDesign, receiving the most votes from consumers and members of the industry.
Century Furniture will put the chair into production next year and Quillen will receive a royalty for each one sold.
He also was awarded a $1,000 prize from Cargill's BiOH polyols business, a sponsor of the design competition, at a ceremony here this morning at the High Point Market. Runners up in the competition received gifts from cosponsor Toray International, maker of Ultrasuede EcoDesign upholstery covers.
"The attention Project UDesign has garnered here at the High Point Market, as well as online from the public and the media over the past few months, has been quite significant - confirming that consumers and the trade want to see more sustainable products in the marketplace," said Yusuf Wazirada, Cargill's bio-based polyurethanes business unit leader.
Cargill produces a soy-based foam that can be used in place of a portion of the petroleum-based foam in upholstered furniture. The Project UDesign contest, among Savannah College of Art and Design students, highlighted eco-friendly design.
"Sustainability is about more than being ‘green' and using eco-friendly products and processes. It's also about investing in our futures," said Quillen, a resident of Johnson City, Tenn.
Contest organizers said Quillen's furniture design is the first to be crowdsourced, since it was chosen based on online voting. His design received 1,881 of the votes cast. More than 4,000 consumers and industry members took part in the voting.
Ryland Quillen
The other finalists in the competition were SCAD students Emily Carpenter and Matt Gray.
Century, which also was a cosponsor of the contest, will produce the chair's frame from sustainably harvested and certified woods.
"The Project UDesign Competition has been a rewarding experience for the students who participated, but it's been an equally rewarding endeavor for all of the sponsoring companies involved," said Helen Brier, sales and marketing manager, Interiors, Toray International. "The students' obvious talent and passion for eco-friendly design as ‘the right thing to do' has been energizing for everyone involved."
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