Results of Innovative Contest to be Announced at NFDA Convention in October 2013
Alan Creedy was recently selected as an independent judge for the International Design for Death competition. Design for Death is the world’s inaugural international competition to re-design death care for the future. Administered by Designboom online magazine and sponsored by two Singapore philanthropic groups (the Lien Foundation and ACM Foundation) Design for Death invites designers, artists, architects and anyone with a creative mind and spirit to present their ideas and innovations to inspire and transform death care practices.
Design for Death was conceived to challenge the international creative and design community to re-think and re-imagine the trappings of a funeral or memorial service, how internments can be conducted or the deceased remembered. The competition will award a total of more than $100,000 in prizes and sought submissions in two categories for the first of two contest phases: How various aspects of death care can be environmentally friendly and interpretations of how design can better encapsulate the deceased and remember them.
“I am honored to be selected to judge this prestigious international contest on behalf of funeral service,” commented Creedy. “Designboom’s design contests have had such tremendous impact on other industries like architecture and automobiles. I can’t wait to see what the influence will be on our own profession.”
The competition’s judges each bring their unique field of expertise to the competition. In addition to Creedy, the other independent judges include Richard Meier, winning architect of the prestigious Pritzker Prize, and popular digital artist Ray Caesar judged the competition as well as a representative from the four supporting organizations, including Christine Pepper of the National Funeral Directors Association. Winners will be invited to Austin, Texas and have their work showcased at the annual 2013 NFDA International Convention & Expo in late October.
The entries from the first phase of the Design for Death competition were recently evaluated and the second phase of the competition will commence later this year and will focus on architectural spaces (e.g. funeral home, columbarium, crematorium, and cemetery). In reflecting on entries from the initial phase, Creedy commented, “Having now completed the judging of the first phase of contest, from that experience alone, I can report that some exciting yet practical innovations are in our future.”
Full competition details are available at www.designfordeath.org.
About Creedy & Company: Headquartered in Raleigh, NC, Creedy & Company is a Business Advisory Service founded by Alan Creedy in 2008. His hands-on industry experience enables him to quickly analyze core problems, develop and prioritize solutions and implement strategies for quick turnaround. For more information, visit www.funeralhomeconsulting.org.
Really? There are so many more of us who are qualified, as we are actually funeral directors who have more valid
experience.