2021 European Design Awards

A EUROPEAN COMMUNITY OF EXCELLENCE

Since 2007 a group of people, made out of publishers, journalists, editors and academics, come together on a yearly basis, to gather, evaluate and acknowledge the best examples of communication design in our continent.

It is a very special and unique set up, in the sense that it involves the people who curate similar content on an every day basis. As such it also provides participants with an opportunity to make their worκ visible to a wider audience ( through the media that the jury members represent ).

The European Design Awards wraps up with a festival in a different city every year, leading up to the awards ceremony. This creates an ideal opportunity for the most creative people of our community to come together, benchmark, be inspired and celebrate.

Very soon the submission period will start for the 2021 edition of the European Design Awards.
We, therefore, thought it would be useful to inform all interested parties on the critical dates for this year’s organisation.

THE ENTRY DEADLINE IS 26 FEBRUARY 2021

• The submission period starts on December 21st, 2020
• Entry deadline is set for February 26th, 2021
• Physical samples ( for the categories that they are required ) should be at our Athens office by March 10th, at the latest
• Notification of finalists will commence on April 11th and will be completed within a week
• The awards ceremony ( and accompanying festival ) will take place in Valencia June 10th-13th, 2021

EUROPEAN DESIGN FESTIVAL

We hope that this year’s Festival will take place in Valencia ( with the care of the Asociación de Diseñadores de la Comunidad Valenciana ). The festival will include an awards show, conference, workshops, exhibitions, studio walks, and many other events! Creative people from all over Europe are expected to join the many events, which will also be open to the wider public. Please note that due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, festival dates are provisional. Alternative plans are being drawn for all possible scenarios. Please follow this space for updates.

THE JURY

SELECTION OF THE JURY MEMBERS

1. The jury will consist of representatives from leading communication design magazines in Europe.
2. Each magazine will appoint one jury member who is qualified to serve the specific task.

CHAIRPERSON

The judges shall elect a chairperson from among themselves.

EXAMINATION OF ENTRIES

The judges shall examine all the designs submitted by the participants, determine whether they conform to the rules and conditions, and exclude any which do not.

INTERNATIONAL DIVERSITY

The jury must consist of members from as many different European countries as possible. No one country shall have a majority representation in the jury.

SUBSTITUTES

1. If for any reason an appointed jury member becomes unable to be present at the jury meeting, the magazine is entitled to appoint a substitute.
2. Any alterations of the jury members will be announced on the awards’ web site.

PRE-SELECTION

1. In the case where in any specific category the number of submissions is too high to be accommodated by the normal jury procedures, and in accordance to the International Council of Graphic Design Associations guidelines, a Pre-selection committee might be formed.
2. This will have a minimum of five members and it will be international in its composition.
3. The task of this body is to facilitate the work of the regular jury by providing it with a number of finalists among which the awards and distinctions will be decided.
4. The methods and criteria implemented by the Pre-selection jury will be the same as the ones implemented by the regular jury.

JUDGING CRITERIA

STANDARD CRITERIA

1. Design quality: Design excellence including use of images, typography etc.
2. Creativity: Originality and artistic quality.
3. Relevance: To what extent the design serves the specific purpose it was designed for.

CRITERIA FOR WEBSITES

1. Usability.
2. Technical quality.
3. Design quality: Design excellence, including use of images, typography etc.
4. Creativity: Originality and artistic quality.
5. Relevance: To what extent the design serves the specific purpose it was designed for.

CRITERIA FOR TYPEFACES

1. Creativity: Originality and artistic quality.
2. Readability: How easily or comfortably a typeset text reads.
3. Legibility: The ease and speed with which the reader can decipher each letterform and word.

AWARDS & CATALOGUE

AWARDS

1. There are three levels of distinction: Gold, Silver and Bronze.
2. In each category, a Gold is only awarded if the jury believes that the specific work is of extremely high calibre. The Gold winners receive a trophy during the Award Ceremony. In rare cases, the maximum of two Gold awards may be given in one category.
3. Silver and bronze winners receive a diploma during the Award Ceremony. A maximum of two silver and two bronze awards can be given per category.
4. Silver and bronze winners might purchase a trophy as well, which they will receive by post or in the ED-Awards reception right after the ceremony.

ED-AWARDS CATALOGUE

All award winners ( gold, silver and bronze ) and finalists will be published in the ED-Awards catalogue and on the ED-Awards website.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF JUDGES’ DECISIONS

1. The award winners will be informed at least one month before the award ceremony but not officially announced before the award ceremony.
2. The participants who did not win will also be informed via e-mail no later than two weeks before the award ceremony.

SUBMISSIONS

TIME

1. The submission rules must be published at least one month before the submission period. The submission period is between 21 December 2020 and 26 February 2021. In order for a submission to be valid, the fee needs to be paid before the deadline and the posted sample must arrive to European Designs Greek office no later than 10 March 2021. The organisers reserve the right to extend the deadline provided that they announce it in due time.
2. Only work published during the previous calendar year and up to the day of the current deadline is eligible for submission.

RETURN

1. Any material submitted can be returned unless it has won a prize, in which case it becomes part of the festival’s archive and hence the property of the organisers.
2. All packaging and post costs ( plus a non-refundable administration cost of €50 per submission ) are to be covered by the submitter.

REPRODUCTION RIGHTS

1. Entries cannot be submitted without the prior permission of the client/owner of the rights to the work.
2. The organisers reserve the right to publish submissions in the ED-Awards catalogue, the ED-Awards website, promotional material and exhibitions. When doing so they must always acknowledge the designer/company. They also reserve the right to record and publish videos and pictures from the award ceremony.

FORM OF SUBMISSIONS

The exact requirements for each submission are stated under each category ( e.g. size, resolution, document formats ). Submissions can be made online via the ED-Awards website.

SHIPPING

A customs invoice should be included with the shipment when applicable, marked “Contest material – no commercial value”. If the courier company requires a value of the goods, please use nominal values ( e.g. 1€/item ). It is the participant’s responsibility to ensure that the shipment is delivered to the European Design office in Athens and to cover all courier, mailing and insurance cost as well as any import duties.

PAYMENT FEES

European Design will cover normal credit card fees. If the participants choose the bank or money transfer alternatives, any transfer or exchange fees are covered by them.

WITHDRAWAL

The participants may withdraw their submissions at any time up to the jury meeting. If they withdraw them before the end of the submission period, the submission fee will be returned. A fee of 15% will be withheld in order to cover credit card fees and administration expenses.

ACCEPTANCE OF RULES

By submitting entries the participants agree to the rules. Non-compliance with any of the rules will result in the automatic disqualification of the entry.

PARTICIPANTS

RIGHT TO PARTICIPATE

All designers living or working within Europe may participate. Designers in Europe may submit work done for clients outside Europe. Designers who are not based within Europe may only submit work that was created for the European market.

EXCLUDED FROM COMPETITION

1. Designers without a business or home address in Europe ( unless they are submitting work that was created for European customers ).
2. Jury members and their family members.
3. Employees of the magazines represented in the jury.
4. Organisers and their family members.

EUROPEAN COUNTRIES

1. Andorra
2. Albania
3. Armenia
4. Austria
5. Azerbaijan
6. Belarus
7. Belgium
8. Bosnia & Herzegovina
9. Bulgaria
10. Cyprus
11. Croatia
12. Czech Republic
13. Denmark
14. Estonia
15. Finland
16. France
17. Georgia
18. Germany
19. Greece
20. Hungary
21. Iceland
22. Ireland
23. Italy
24. Kazakhstan
25. Kosovo
26. Latvia
27. Liechtenstein
28. Lithuania
29. Luxembourg
30. Malta
31. Moldova
32. Monaco
33. Montenegro
34. Netherlands
35. North Macedonia
36. Norway
37. Poland
38. Portugal
39. Romania
40. Russia
41. San Marino
42. Serbia
43. Slovakia
44. Slovenia
45. Spain
46. Sweden
47. Switzerland
48. Turkey
49. Ukraine
50. United Kingdom

SUBMISSION FEES

The current submission fees for the European Design Awards are as follows:

STANDARD SUBMISSION FEES

The standard submission fee per entry is €140.

MULTIPLE SUBMISSION FEE DISCOUNTS

When submitting 5 or more entries, the submission fee is reduced to €112 per entry. This represents a 20% volume discount on the total entry fee.

Example:
1 to 4 submissions: €140 per submission
5+ submissions: €112 per submission

STUDENT SUBMISSION FEES

For students entering the category “School projects”, the fee is €40. No volume discount is available.
For students entering other categories ( published work ), normal submission fees apply.

ADDITIONAL CHARGES

Please note that there are no additional fees for winners.

CATEGORIES AT A GLANCE

BRANDING

Company LOGO, Brand LOGO, Printed Identity Applications, Digital Identity Applications, Integrated Identity Applications

PUBLICATIONS

Book Layout, Book Cover, Artistic Catalogue, Magazine, Annual Report, Calendar

PROMOTION

Poster Single, Poster Series, Brochure, Product Catalogue, Cards & Flyers

PACKAGING

Packaging Alcoholic Drinks, Packaging Food & Beverages, Packaging Health & Beauty, Music / Film Cover, Packaging Miscellaneous

DIGITAL

Promotional Site, Information Site, E-commerce, Mobile Apps, Motion Graphics, Miscellaneous Digital

ILLUSTRATIONS

Book & Editorial Illustration, Corporate Illustration, Infographics – Print, Infographics – Digital

INTERNAL PRODUCTION

Printed Self-Promotion, Digital Self-Promotion, Self-Initiated Projects

MISCELLANEOUS

Original Typeface, Signs & Displays, Exhibition Design, Digital Installations, Student Project, Miscellaneous Printed

EUROPEAN DESIGN AWARDS

ATHENS / GREECE
SOKRATOUS 157, 176 73
KALLITHEA

T. +30 210 9593033
F. +30 210 9523607
E. INFO@EUROPEANDESIGN.ORG

相關連結：

• European Design Awards 2021