March 05, 2024
Five unique sustainability approaches earn latest Denhart Family Sustainability Scholarships Prizes at ArtCenter College of Design
Projects range from a revolutionary makeup kit to a recyclable footwear concept and urban transportation solutions.
A unique modular makeup kit that is refillable, minimal, and ultimately recyclable is among this year’s Denhart Scholarship Prize recipients. The projects highlight the best of ArtCenter’s student creativity in promoting sustainability. Each year, the Denhart Scholarship awards $15,000 for first prize, $10,000 for second prize, and $5,000 for the third prize winners.
This year's winners showcased the diversity and ingenuity of ArtCenter's student body. Lucy Lue, Tina Yiyuan Tang, and alumna Doris Xinyue Tao clinched the first prize with their makeup kit, “Tres,” which offers a modular, refillable, and recyclable design. "Teva For You," a customizable and recyclable footwear product and service system by Alexia Shannon Wibisono, earned the second prize for its recycling awareness focus. Matt Zihang Zheng's concept, "Toyota-Kinto 98%," which addresses parking and traffic flow for commuters, secured the third prize.
Special recognition was also awarded to Arya Zerong Qui's concept, "The impossible echo," and Na Eun Choi's project, "Sprout," for their innovative approaches to biodiversity preservation and climate-resilient infrastructure, respectively.
Students from all undergraduate disciplines at ArtCenter are eligible to submit concepts or projects that integrate materials, functions, cultures, technology, ecosystems, commerce, equity, well-being, with sustainability and environmental stewardship. A dedicated committee including a guest juror with subject matter expertise evaluates submissions based on their ability to propose new, holistic steps forward through art and design.
This year’s panel included Pasadena City Council Member Felicia Williams, who has a long career in public policy and specializes in clean energy and transportation to bring significant urban planning and infrastructure development expertise to the jury.
Williams states, “As a long-time environmentalist with a net-zero energy home, EV, and drought-tolerant landscaping, I was honored to serve as a judge for the 2023 Denhart Sustainability Scholarship Prize. All of the student projects were inspiring, and it was hard to select the winners. Congratulations to the student prize winners whose innovative ideas we will see as new products in the years to come. Pasadena prides itself on being a leader in sustainability, and having a partnership with ArtCenter, its students and graduates help us fulfill our goals and continue to aim higher."
In 2011, ArtCenter, in partnership with the Denhart family, established the Denhart Family Sustainability Scholarship Prizes to bolster the College's evolving curriculum in comprehensive design. This initiative supports students' creative endeavors and instills a deep-seated ethos of environmental responsibility and social consciousness among students, faculty, and staff.
The scholarship is named after Gun Denhart, co-founder of the renowned Portland-based children’s fashion brand Hanna Andersson. Known for her advocacy of sustainability and family-friendly workplace policies, Denhart, along with her son, Christian Denhart, a 2010 graduate of ArtCenter’s Product Design department, spearheaded the scholarship's creation. Tragically, Christian's father, Tom Denhart, passed away just before his graduation, prompting Denhart and her son to establish the endowed scholarship in his honor.
Since its inception, the Denhart Family Sustainability Scholarship Prizes has awarded over $350,000 to students whose projects seamlessly blend creativity, design, and environmental and social objectives. Heidrun Mumper-Drumm, director of environmental initiatives at ArtCenter, emphasized the importance of these awards, stating, “The Denhart Awards recognize a range of outstanding projects that exemplify thoughtful research, responsible design, innovation, and invention.”
The Denhart Family Sustainability Scholarship Prizes underscore ArtCenter's commitment to cultivating artists and designers who can shape the planet's future through design thinking. These initiatives pave the way for a sustainable and equitable future, reflecting ArtCenter's unwavering dedication to innovation and social responsibility.
Past judges included Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard, EV automaker Fisker founder Henrik Fisker, Tesla head designer Franz von Holzhausen, as well as industry experts at Walt Disney Imagineering, Microsoft, and TerraCycle.
About ArtCenter: Founded in 1930 and located in Pasadena, California, ArtCenter College of Design is a global leader in art and design education. ArtCenter offers 11 undergraduate and 10 graduate degrees in a variety of industrial design disciplines as well as in a range of visual and applied arts. In addition to its top-ranked academic programs, the College serves members of the Greater Los Angeles region through a highly regarded series of year-round extension programs for all ages and levels of experience. Renowned for both its ties to industry and its social impact initiatives.
ArtCenter is the first design school to receive the United Nations’ Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) status in recognition of its commitment to social impact design through Designmatters. Throughout the College’s long and storied history, ArtCenter alumni have had a profound impact on popular culture, the way we live and important issues in our society.
Contact:
Keith Wang
Coordinator, Marketing and Communications
ArtCenter College of Design
keith.artcenter@gmail.com
626 396-2338
