Cheng Concrete has announced the winners of its 2012 Circle of Distinction Design Challenge, honoring design and craftsmanship in cast decorative concrete created by members of the Cheng Concrete Exchange.
Judges for the 2012 Circle of Distinction Design Challenge were: Fu-Tung Cheng, founder of Cheng Design, Cheng Concrete and ConcreteExchange.com; Jim Peterson, founder of ConcreteNetwork.com; and Miranda Jones, style editor of Sunset magazine. Entries were judged on elements and principles of design, design planning, innovative concepts and forward thinking, creativity and innovation, use of color, presentation, innovative forming techniques, and client problem-solving.
The judging panel looked at 104 entries and awarded a Best of Category in nine categories, plus 19 Honorable Mentions and one Best of Show. The co-presidents of Cheng Concrete awarded two Presidents’ Awards for entries of special merit. A new category this year focused on entries made using Cheng’s D-FRC (decorative fiber-reinforced concrete) or GFRC (glass fiber-reinforced concrete).
The Best of Show award went to Cody Carpenter of Architectural Concrete Interiors LLC, Phoenix, Ariz., for the Timo bar, a Phoenix commercial restaurant project for which Carpenter acted as general contractor, designer and fabricator. Using a form made of finish-grade plywood veneered with high-gloss laminate, Carpenter cast in place to develop a sense of visual movement by creating varied color striations in the monolithic piece. The bar features a hammered foot rail set into the concrete wall and a removable pewter bar-top shot rail suspended on inlaid steel pins.
Cheng praised the winner in a news release: “We appreciated the massive and complex form building it took to create this site-cast work in a restaurant. From the compound corner that looks like a reverse wave to the exquisite detail of the wrought iron bar, and (from) the contrast between the slick surfaces and the delicate inlays to the grout finish — bold and ambitious, this was a clear winner.”
The two Presidents’ Awards were chosen by the co-presidents of Cheng Concrete, Annalyn Chargualaf-Peluso and Mike Heidebrink. Chargualaf-Peluso chose a concrete, steel and glass cabinet created by Paul Wood, of Made by Wood, New York, N.Y., for a computer design firm. Heidebrink’s award goes to Michael Pasquale, of Pasquale Construction, Yuba City, Calif., for a concrete shower.
Here’s the complete list of the winners:
Best of Show: Cody Carpenter, Architectural Concrete Interiors LLC, Phoenix, Ariz.
Presidents’ Awards: Michael Pasquale, Pasquale Construction, Yuba City, Calif., and Paul Wood, Made by Wood, New York, N.Y.
Best Outdoor Living: Dania Andrade, Ancuba, Rosarito, Mexico
Best Bath: Cody Carpenter, Architectural Concrete Interiors LLC, Phoenix, Ariz.
Best Integral Sink: Cody Carpenter, Architectural Concrete Interiors LLC, Phoenix, Ariz.
Best Furniture: Yves St. Hilaire, Sticks + Stones Furniture, Squamish, British Columbia
Best Fireplace: Cody Carpenter, Architectural Concrete Interiors LLC, Phoenix, Ariz.
Best Commercial/Retail: Sean Dunston, Concrete Jungle Design, Singapore
Best Sculpture: Caio Paagman, Concrete Gallery Design, Invermere, British Columbia
Best Interior Kitchen: Yves St. Hilaire, Sticks + Stones Furniture, Squamish, British Columbia
Best D-FRC/GFRC: John Newbold, Newbold Stone, Austin, Texas
