This summer, the Chartered Society of Designers (CSD) and its key members have been celebrating the next generation of CEP student designers through a number of online award ceremonies.

The CEP Student Prize is awarded yearly to a design student from each of the Society’s Course Endorsement Program‘s design courses. Students who have proven great work throughout their course are honoured with awards that recognise their talents and constant hard work.

We have already showcased talented students from Staffordshire University in our last blog, but this month we will put the spotlight on students from Nottingham Trent University.

Design student winners at Nottingham Trent University (NTU)

Throughout design education, the CSD Course Endorsement Program formally recognises excellence in both design teaching and study. The programme was created to distinguish and support those courses that clearly prepare and develop students to practice design to professional standards.

This year a number of students from NTU were awarded CEP prizes including Mark Barrios Moreno Assoc. CSD and Sophie Roger Assoc.CSD for their work in graphic design and decorative arts respectively.

To learn more about their studies and passion for design, we spoke with both Mark and Sophie.

Design Student spotlight:  Mark Barrios Moreno Assoc.CSD

Tell us a little about your work.

Hola! I’m Mark, a Spanish creative based in the UK. I’m a maker, a designer and I use the colour blue way too often. The biggest lesson I’ve taken from university was to quit over thinking and start getting louder. My work aims to do exactly that, through a thorough research process, conscious reflection and a combination of both analogue and digital techniques.

I enjoy finding the right approach, solving real issues and disrupting where necessary. Throughout the year, I worked on a range of ambitiously interesting projects, from building the first ever version of a mindfulness board game, to creating a campaign that targeted the consequences of the UK housing crisis. I enjoy keeping my mind and my solutions open which makes every project different.

What inspired you to become a designer?

I know that my practice focuses on positive impact is probably a bit cliché, but I can’t find anything that guides my work more than to leave the world a little better than how I found it. It is truly my motivation to make good, meaningful work. I strive to use the power of good design to turn apathy into action, and have some fun on the way.

What does being awarded the CEP Student Prize mean to you?

Winning this award has meant a real tangible acknowledgement of my practice. These past few years haven’t always been easy, and to have such a prestigious Society validate work like ours shows graduates the creative industry has space for us and all our work. Hopefully it will mean a job offer too!

What’s next for you? 

I’m looking to extend my practice; I want to learn as much as I can, dive deep into every opportunity and find a job that supports the reasons why I enjoy design so much. I’d also like to learn to dance, but we’ll see about that one…

It’s both exciting and nerve-racking to not know what’s next, but we’re all figuring it out as we go!

Where can we find you?

You can find me via the CSD Find-a-Designer here, or view my end of year project at YES 2021 here.  

You can also find me online at:

Behance: www.behance.net/bamostudios

Website:  http://www.bamo.cargo.site/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bamo.design/

 

Design Student spotlight:  Sophie Roger Assoc. CSD

Tell us a little about your work.

I’m a Nottingham-based ceramicist, designing and handcrafting sculptural lighting. My practice centres on the ancient Japanese carving method of Kurinuki, and adaptations of the technique that are personal to my work enable me to create large-scale sculptural, functional pieces.

My work is heavily material-driven, with instinctual making and organic materials at its core. I work in stoneware clays and mix my glazes by hand, which I have spent a lot of time developing. I draw a lot of influence from geological and natural features, and aim to design pieces that are elegant and simple, whilst demonstrating a level of complexity with the scale in which I work.

What inspired you to become a designer?

Throughout sixth form, I was set on becoming a psychologist. However, in my year working full-time as a pharmacy dispenser, I decided to decline the offer and apply for a Foundation Diploma in Art and Design instead and pursue what I really wanted to be doing.

My foundation course at Hereford College of Arts is definitely what I would pinpoint as my inspiration. For the first time I understood that there was more to art and design than fine art, and it was here that my interest in design, and particularly ceramics began.

What does being awarded the CEP Student Prize mean to you?

I am so grateful to have been awarded the CEP Student Prize, especially as I have been working alongside so many other amazing designer makers for the past three years! I’m certain this achievement will bring so many opportunities that I would otherwise not have got.

What’s next for you? 

Having gone straight from university into a placement opportunity with Grads4Nottm and later having the privilege of working with my ceramics tutor Anna Hunt, I then secured a full-time position at deVOL Kitchens in their ceramics department. Alongside full-time work, I plan to continue promoting, making, and selling the lamps from my final degree collection.

Where can we find you?

You can find my portfolio via the CSD Find-a-Designer here, or find me on Instagram here.

Are you a design student?

Individuals who have recently graduated, are in the early phases of their design career, or have the required equivalent competencies can join CSD as Associate members. Learn more about CSD Associate membership here.

Similarly, if you’re keen to share your work, you can join our virtual show YES2021 and exhibit your final year project to your peers, the public and most importantly potential employers! Register as a student here.