Hermès chooses play as theme for 2016 Prix Émile Hermès awards

Family-owned Hermès is embarking on its annual campaign for cultivating young talent with its Prix Émile Hermès awards.

The 2016 edition of the Prix Émile Hermès will feature "play" as the theme. Since play is “a vital activity for personal growth,” Hermès is focusing on the verb for candidates to submit designs for an object, material, utensil, piece of furniture, architectural concept, etc.

Play for all
Since 2008, the Prix Émile Hermès prize has been awarded to purposeful designers whose work embodies the notion that a higher-quality life can be achieved through design. By supporting the artisan skills of blossoming designers, Hermès simultaneously shines a light on its own craftsmanship (see story).

The designs submitted are expected to be sustainable alternatives to already existing everyday objects. The production process of the object should also consider the environment when being crafted.

Each item submitted will have a detailed energy audit and an analysis of the object’s production.

The products entered also must be able to be easily reproduced.

This year's jury consists of designers, editors and the president and vice president of the Fondation d’entreprise Hermès.

Candidates are expected to reflect on play within contemporary life and society in terms that “Playing allows us to act freely in a context perceived as fictional and unrelated to everyday life. It takes place in a circumscribed space and time governed by a specific set of rules, whose outcome cannot be predicted. Playing does not lead to material possessions or real wealth.”