The CLUE has unveiled the three winners of its International Lighting Design Contest, held this year under the theme Lightius Loci.

Mr. YeonHo Lee from Seoul, South Korea and his team (WooSeok Jang, DongGyun Ha), have won the first prize of $5,000 for their project DMZ: N38˚; the second prize of $2,500 was awarded to Mrs. Maria-Chrysoula Akrivou from Athens, Greece and her team (Antonis Athanasiou) for Lightening a modern odyssey; and the third prize of $1,000 was awarded to Mrs. Verbeek Kara from Vancouver, Canada, for Salmon Run.

Record year

The second edition of the CLUE competition invited participants to think about the spirit of a place where light does not escape the genius loci design principle. Candidates had to choose a place without limitation of scale, location, indoor or outdoor and provide a response in line with the local reality.

With a grand total of 222 projects from over 50 countries, the second edition of CLUE’s lighting design competition is a record year! The CLUE members and the professional jury were really impressed with the wide diversity of design solutions in response to this year’s challenging theme. Among the finalists, the 7-members jury awarded 3 prizes and 3 honorable mentions to distinguish the most thought-provoking projects. Have a look at the winners of this edition:

First Prize – DMZ: N38˚

Our jury awarded the first prize to Mr. YeonHo Lee from Seoul, South Korea and his team (WooSeok Jang, DongGyun Ha). The project DMZ: N38˚ proposes to maximize the emotional and experimental experience through the light in the world’s only place of division: the demilitarized zone between North Korea and South Korea. The project addresses the issue of the war entanglement after the unification. The goal is to turn its functions of boundary into one of protection, a message of unification and world peace that will also help preserve the environment.

DMZ: N38˚ YeonHo Lee,Seoul, South Korea WooSeok Jang DongGyun Ha

Second Prize – Lightening a modern odyssey

Lightening a modern odyssey, brought to us by Mrs. Maria-Chrysoula Akrivou from Athens, Greece and her team (Antonis Athanasiou) was awarded second prize for their project that deals with the issues of the Aegean Sea, the area between the coastline of Turkey and the Greek islands that has become a place of sacrifices. The project envisions a cross point floating construction in key areas where human lives are in danger. The light becomes a conjunction between earth and haven in order to help immigrants.

Lightening a modern odyssey Maria-Chrysoula Akrivou, Athens, Greece

Third Prize – Salmon Run

The third prize is awarded to Mrs. Verbeek Kara from Vancouver, Canada, for Salmon Run. This lighting installation is designed for Garry Point Park, where the Pacific Ocean meets the Fraser River and the salmon begin their journey upstream. The oversize cedar fishing baskets, designed and constructed by traditional basket weaving techniques, would be lit up at night, creating a symbolic beacon for the declining salmon population to return to their native home.

Salmon Run Verbeek Kara, Vancouver, Canada

Honorable mentions

The jury also awarded honorable mentions to these three relevant projects.

Närvaro

M. Christopher Calo from California, USA
Närvaro lets people see where the ships are coming from in the port of Long Beach, to help visitors and residents appreciate the diversity of the countries entering the port.

Närvaro Christopher Calo, California, USA

Ab Aeterno

Mrs. Irena Milojeska and her team (Simona Tasevska, Hristina Sekuloska) from Republic of Macedonia
The old railway station of Skopje remained standing after the 1936 earthquake and the Ab Aeterno lighting installation establishes a spiritual relationship between two different time periods.

Ab Aeterno Irena Milojeska, Republic of Macedonia

Luminescent Memorium

Mrs. Aurore Foray and her team (Fanny Guigon, Giovanni Guillabert) from Montréal, Canada.
The Place de la République in Paris is a well-known French symbol and in a world where violent conflicts have global effects, the Luminescent Memorium installation is the best answer to the darkness.

Luminescent Memorium Aurore Foray, Montréal, Canada

Congratulations to the winners and thanks to all the participants for their creative and innovative lighting concepts. Stay tuned for the next edition of the CLUE Competition coming September 2016. Don’t miss our interviews with the top 3 winners to be posted on the Philips Lighting Blog in April and May 2016.