The prestigious meeting point of the natural stone sector in the global arena, Marble İzmir – International Natural Stone and Technologies Fair, opened its doors for the 30th time and welcomed sector professionals and natural stone enthusiasts. The fair, organized by İZFAŞ and hosted by İzmir Metropolitan Municipality, hosted the 7th International Different Natural Stone Design Competition, which aims to inspire young talents and bring them to the sector. The competition, organized with the slogan “It was different and it was beautiful”, caused young designers to experience moments full of excitement, pride and happiness. In the competition, where a total of 600 thousand TL worth of awards were distributed, future designers dazzled with their original ideas.
Record Participation and Original Designs Produced
This year, the 7th International Different Natural Stone Design Competition, organized with the theme of “furniture”, saw record participation from both domestic and international sources. A total of 892 young designer candidates applied with their projects to bring their dreams together with natural stone. The jury, which included many important names from academics to experienced designers and leading representatives of the sector, selected 25 original designs after a meticulous evaluation process. 17 companies sponsoring the competition transformed these 25 selected designs into reality using marble. These projects, which were implemented with the vision of supporting natural stone exports with design and architecture, were presented to visitors in the special exhibition area of the 30th Marble İzmir Fair. In addition to the talents who took the first three places among these 25 products that were transformed from design to furniture and deemed worthy of being exhibited, the Aegean Mineral Exporters' Association International Fair Participation Award, two Holiday Awards and the University Special Award found their owners. In addition, the companies supporting the competition presented their own special awards.
İZFAŞ General Manager Cumalıoğlu: “A Platform for Young People to Realize Their Dreams”
Emphasizing that the competition is of great importance for Turkey as well as the Marble İzmir Fair, İZFAŞ General Manager Tuğçe Cumalıoğlu said, “The Different Natural Stone Design Competition is the only international design competition in our country. This year, nearly 12 applications were made from 70 universities from 900 countries. The students participating are interior architecture, industrial design or architecture students. It is a very important opportunity for them because they see the products they draw and shape on paper as finished products. The competition is a platform for them to realize their dreams. I find this value given to young people by both İzmir Metropolitan Municipality and İZFAŞ and the sector very valuable. Participating companies realize their designs by processing them as sponsors and thus transform their own stones into furniture or fixtures. This gives them a different framework, they have the chance to see how their stones can be used in different sectors and in the industrial field. I also find the competition very valuable in terms of showing how stone is actually a living thing and can touch every point of our lives.” These words of Cumalıoğlu clearly revealed how important a starting point the competition is for young designers.
Emotional Expressions and Future Goals from Award-Winning Youth
Young people who participated from various universities in Türkiye and abroad and were deemed worthy of the award expressed their excitement and pride in this prestigious competition that opened the doors to their dreams.
First Prize Winner FIDES Project
Selçuk University Industrial Design Department students Nisa Nur Gülmez and Zeynep Bakırcı were happy to win the first prize with their project called “FİDES”. The young talents, who stated that they were very excited and proud to have their design first produced as furniture and then crowned with first place, said that they will spend the 150 thousand TL prize they won for their education. Gülmez and Bakırcı said, “We see this incentive as an important resource to realize our dreams and future goals. The name of our design is FİDES, we created a form that reflects the original and organic structure of Kaymaklı, inspired by the historical Kaymaklı region of Nevşehir, and transformed this form into a modern, functional furniture. When it meets marble, a durable and modular product emerged. It can be used as a seating group or shelf, stacked or side by side, as desired.”
Second Prize Winner Tempora Project
Gazi University Industrial Design Department fourth year student Sıla Çelik won the second prize with her “Tempora” project, which consists of a three-piece coffee table designed by taking inspiration from time zones and embodying the time of quarter, half and full hours. Sıla Çelik, who won the 100 thousand lira prize, expressed her great excitement and said, “The meeting of my design with natural stone increased my interest in natural stone even more. I am thinking of developing myself in this field. Since I am a senior student, it was a competition and a degree that will be very useful for me as a reference when starting my business life. I am very excited, I feel much more courageous.”
Third Prize Goes to Polish Youth
The third prize in the competition was won by two university students from Poland. Karolina Kubala and Maria Jaworska won the 50 thousand lira prize with their nightstand project called “PD”, which consists of layers of various natural stones. Kubala and Jaworska, who expressed their great happiness to receive a degree in an international and reliable organization, said, “We were very excited and proud. A friend of ours participated in this competition last year. We applied with the guidance of our university professors. We designed a piece of furniture by imagining the harmony of contrasting and different colors with different natural stones. We were very happy to receive an award. This competition and the Marble İzmir Fair have a very important name all over the world. It was an international success for us. We are very happy to be here and we want to participate in the competition every year.”
Support for Young Talents from Leading Companies in the Industry
The designer-company meetings held at Fuar İzmir in the first stage of the competition created an important platform for young talents to present their designs to the leading manufacturers in the sector. A total of 25 projects were meticulously produced by reputable companies in the sector such as Alimoğlu Afyon, Alimoğlu İzmir Marble&Granit, Başaranlar, Ebla Stone, Ege Anti Marble, Çizgi Marble, Golder, Goldmer, Gürmas Gürel, İz Granit, Kar Maden, Laodikya, Marble Shop, Mercan Tasarım, Megamer, Naçev and Sirmersan and were made ready for the competition and to be exhibited at the Marble İzmir Fair. This collaboration allowed young designers to turn their dreams into reality, while also paving the way for companies to come together with innovative ideas. With this support it provides to young talents, Marble İzmir continues to make an important investment in the future of the natural stone sector.
