Design and Where It Drives Us: Design 2022 + 2023 Entries

What drives someone in design? Whether it’s for actual cars or a cause you care about, having a design goal in mind can really make a great piece of work!

Innovation drives the desire to design and create in an attempt to enhance society and accessibility. In the automotive industry in the United States, the city of Detroit stayed at the forefront of the automotive industry boom thanks to its historic steel industry. A direct result of this led to the 20th century becoming a turning point in transportation, with the popularization of cars to get around easier in the United States. In turn, Detroit became synonymous with automotive transportation, pioneering over seven decades’ worth of innovation. 

It is no surprise that the 2022 Gold-winning “Detroit Style Exhibition Book” (above) came to fruition as a means to celebrate the history of Detroit and its cars. Designed by Union AdWorks, the project was commissioned by the Detroit Institution of Art as part of an exhibit from Nov. 15, 2020 to June 5, 2022. The exhibit featured 12 sedans and coupes to showcase the trajectory of the automotive industry, with each car representing a different era of advancement within the automotive industry. The book was made as a result of Yale University’s being interested in collaborating with the one-of-a-kind exhibition and wanting to publish the book and archive it in their permanent art collection.

This book highlights car designs and interviews the minds behind the automobiles, allowing readers to get an understanding of why these designs were conceptualized. The unique way of envisioning the futuristic and modern design was intentional, with the mission behind this book was to ensure “emphasis was placed on creating a unique color palette and maintaining the ‘car is the star’ philosophy.” Indeed, the image above showcases one of the cars featured in the book with its sleek design, making the vehicle stand out as a beacon of automotive innovation. 

In an installation of art driven to evoke political change, AIGA, the American Institute of Graphic Arts, released “AIGA Get Out the Vote / National Campaign” by Jennifer Sterling (above) as a call to action for graphic designers everywhere. With politics being a leading factor in how many people live, voting in the 2010s and ’20s has never been more crucial. AIGA prompted artists to design a poster in any way they wished that encouraged voting, as long as it remained bipartisan. 

Sterling herself utilizeed bright colors and large designs to draw the viewer into her work. One other clever addition is that she designed her poster in 16 grids to make it printable as either one poster or 16 separate images. Each poster, together or apart, is unique in design and look, making it visually appealing to the audience without losing the main message Sterling is trying to provoke – go out and vote.

To check out past design winners, click here. And if you want to enter our current competition, click here.