Courtesy of IIDA
Friday, the Interior Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) will honor “the creativity and innovation of the best commercial interior designers,” says Susie Woodland, a member of the event committee.
Design firms can be nominated for the awards if they are located in the International Interior Design Association (IIDA) Gateway Chapter region—which includes St. Louis, metro east, and the middle-to-eastern half of the state of Missouri—even if their works are located elsewhere. They are nominated for their commercial design, including civic, healthcare, corporate, restaurant, and historic preservation projects.
“The association provides a forum to demonstrate design professionals’ impact on the health, safety, well being and virtual soul of the public, balancing passion for good design and strategy for best business practices. IIDA stands at the intersection of passion and strategy where designers create extraordinary interiors and experiences,” says Woodland. Firms that are nominated must be based in the International Interior Design Association (IIDA) Gateway Chapter Region, even if their works are located elsewhere.
IIDA Gateway Chapter began IDEA last year to focus on individuals and firms who produce work in commercial—rather than residential—spaces. IDEA’s part of the chapter’s mission is to help form relationships between local designers and firms.
“We wanted to create a platform to showcase the innovative work they are doing and celebrate their achievement, whether those spaces are regional or national,” says Woodland. “The event supports our mission to be essential in advancing the profession of interior design and to share knowledge through community.”
IDEA honors both young and seasoned designers as “an opportunity to celebrate the talent and creative minds of our local interior design community,” Woodland says. “For the nominees and winners, it is a chance to be recognized by their peer leaders in the industry. It is both an honor and an opportunity for business development.”
The nominees will be judged by a panel of professional designers: Donald Cremers, Primo Orpilla, Gretchen Holy, and Carlos Posada. “The judges are vice presidents and principals of the largest and most respected architecture and design firms in the world. They are leaders in our industry,” says Woodland. The judges not only choose who wins in each category, but they choose which category each nomination is placed in.
This year, the award ceremony will take place at the recently renovated Sun Theater, which underwent extensive renovations in 2014. Until that time, it had been neglected for more than 40 years, and the interior was in disrepair. It now is rented out as a performing space for the Grand Center Arts Academy and, occasionally, an event space.
“We are very excited to host this year’s event in the historic and beautifully renovated Sun Theatre,” says Woodland.
Hors d’oeuvres and cocktails will be served at the event from 6 p.m. until the ceremony starts at 8 p.m. To get tickets to attend, visit Ticketleap.
