Every year, a Carpet Design Competition is organized with the aim of enhancing the creative power of the Turkish carpet industry, strengthening the desire to create and sell original designs, rapidly integrating students from relevant institutions into the sector, and encouraging talented young designers and unique designs. The 13th edition of the competition was held in a grand ceremony on the evening of Saturday, October 27, 2018, at the Renaissance Polat Istanbul Hotel. The competition was hosted by the Istanbul Carpet Exporters’ Association (İHİB) and held with the support of the Ministry of Trade of Türkiye.
The competition was announced in 2018, and more than 50 applications were received from various schools.
During the preliminary selection held on May 22, 2019, the applicants’ names and information were kept confidential while their submissions were evaluated by the jury. As a result of the preliminary evaluation, 21 files passed the jury elimination and earned the right to participate in the second jury evaluation.
In the second jury evaluation held on May 24, 2019, the 21 applicants who successfully passed the first jury were invited for interviews, during which they were expected to present themselves, their portfolios, and their designs to the jury. The submissions were evaluated and scored out of 100 based on criteria such as the designer’s level of creativity, the originality and innovation of the design, material-design and material harmony, the feasibility of converting the designs into carpets, and the usability of the designs by the end consumer. Following the interviews conducted by the second jury, the files of the 21 participants were reviewed, and the top 8 designers were selected.
After the eliminations, the designs of the 8 selected finalists were produced by the participants themselves, provided that all costs were covered by the İHİB budget. During the production phase, İHİB provided both financial and logistical support to the participants by connecting them with manufacturers and supplying the necessary materials.
The final jury, held on October 23, 2019, where the top three finalists were determined, was conducted with broad participation. The jury included key representatives from the industry, both local and international designers, and university faculty members.
In the final jury evaluation, the pre-production sketches and the produced carpets of the 8 finalists were examined and scored out of 100. The scoring criteria included the designer’s level of creativity, the originality and innovation of the design, material-design and material harmony, the feasibility of converting the designs into carpets, and the usability of the designs by the end consumer. The designers whose works ranked in the top three were announced during the award ceremony.
Following the opening speeches, Platinum Export Awards were presented to 40 exporting companies, ranked according to their contributions to the carpet sector and export volumes. The awards were distributed across four categories: Woven Machine-Made Carpets, Tufted Wall-to-Wall Machine-Made Carpets, Velvet Carpets and Prayer Rugs, and Handmade Carpets.
The winners of the competition, determined based on the scores of the esteemed jury members comprising industry representatives, academics, and designers, are as follows.
- Berke AŞIK
- Rabia KARAGÜZEL
- Sultan GÜRBÜZER