27.08.10
Kaj Franck Design Prize winner Hannu Kähönen at Habitare 2010
(Press release 27 August 2010)
Welcome to see the work of Hannu Kähönen, the winner of the 2009 Kaj Franck Design Prize, at stand 4 f 27 of the Habitare Furniture, Interior Decoration and Design Fair's Ahead! design area from September 1 to 5.
Designer, artist professor Hannu Kähönen was awarded the Kaj Franck Design Prize in recognition of his wide expertise in design, ranging from practical design work to issues of national design policy. Kähönen has thirty years of professional experience as an entrepreneur, which means he is also well-versed in the uses of design by business. Hannu Kähönen's work is marked by a thorough knowledge of materials, the useability and accessibility of products, and the requirements of sustainable development in manufacturing. In recent years, he has particularly concentrated on material-based product development and environmental issues, good examples of which can be seen in the prize exhibition.
Awarded yearly, the Kaj Franck Design Prize is a distinction that is highly valued among design professionals, the media and the public. The members of the prize jury are CEO Pentti Kivinen of the Finnish Fair Foundation, Dean Helena Hyvönen of the School of Art and Design of the Aalto University, designer Tauno Tarna, Professor Heikki Orvola and CEO Mikko Kalhama of Design Forum Finland.
The prize was instituted in 1992 to maintain the heritage of Professor Kaj Franck (1911–1989), known as the "Conscience of Finnish Design". The prize sum of €10,000 is donated by the Finnish Fair Foundation, which also provides an exhibition venue at the Habitare fair. The prize includes a medal designed by Tapio Junno and an exhibition at Design Forum Finland. A catalogue of the past 17 recipients of the prize can also be seen at Habitare. The winners of the Kaj Franck Design Prize represent the best achievements of Finnish design over a wide range of disciplines including furniture, fashion and textile design, glass and ceramic design, and industrial design.
The Kaj Franck Design Prize 2009: Hannu Kähönen 1.9.–5.9.2010
The Ahead! design area at Habitare, stand 4 f 27, Helsingin Messukeskus – Helsinki Fair Centre, Messuaukio 1, Helsinki, Tel. +358 (0)9 15 091, www.habitare.fi
For more information, please contact:
Design Forum Finland, www.designforum.fi/kajfranck
press@designforum.fi
Competitions and Prizes Manager Tuula Laulajainen, Tel. +358 (0)9 6220 8110, tuula.laulajainen@designforum.fi
Visual materials, AD Piritta Hannonen, Tel. +358 (0)9 6220 8122, piritta.hannonen@designforum.fi
WINNERS OF THE KAJ FRANCK DESIGN PRIZE 1992–2009:
1992 OIVA TOIKKA, 1993 PIRKKO STENROS, 1994 FUJIWO ISHIMOTO, 1995 YRJÖ KUKKAPURO, 1996 KERTTU NURMINEN, 1997 VUOKKO NURMESNIEMI, 1998 HEIKKI ORVOLA, 1999 JORMA VENNOLA, 2000 RITVA PUOTILA, 2001 EERO MIETTINEN, 2002 ANNELI SAINIO, 2003 RISTO VÄÄTÄNEN, 2004 RITVA-LIISA POHJALAINEN, 2005 HANNELE BONSDORFF, 2006 OLAVI LINDÉN, 2007 KATI TUOMINEN-NIITTYLÄ, 2008 EERO AARNIO, 2009 HANNU KÄHÖNEN
