Falmouth Graduate wins Design Week 17 Rising Star award

BA(Hons) Graphic Design graduate Katie Cadwallader, now a designer at Supple Studio, has been awarded ‘Rising star’ at this year’s Design Week Awards. Now in its 26th year, the Design Week Awards are the leading accolade in the design industry. The Rising Star Award is open to those who’ve been in the design industry for up to three years and aims to discover the design industry stars of the future.

“To be recognised as a ‘Rising Star’ is incredible for so many reasons. I’ve been subscribed to Design Week since college so seeing my name up there with some of the world’s greatest designers will take a long time to adjust to. It’s a category in which you have to be nominated by someone – in my case, our clients at Royal Mail and my boss. That in itself was compliment enough.

So many people can take credit for this award – starting with the lecturers on the BA(Hons) Graphic Design course at Falmouth who nurtured me both in my work and in my transition into adulthood. The teachings from Falmouth about the power of ideas and the importance of work ethic, stand me in great stead. I swapped this support system for that of my colleagues at Supple Studio, who constantly push me to be bolder, take risks and have conviction in my work.

No one said it more succinctly than Kevin Spacey bizarrely, “If you’re lucky enough to do well, you have to send the elevator back down” So thanks to everyone who gave me a lift.”

We are extremely proud of Katie’s achievement, which is well deserved. Katie is the fourth Falmouth Graphic Design student to receive this accolade. Previous winners of this award have been Craig Oldham, Josh Turner and Phil Skinner.

Graphic Design graduate Josh Turner wins coveted Rising Star of the Year award

Design Week’s Rising Design Star of the Year has been awarded to our 2013 graduate Josh Turner. Josh, one of the graphic design course’s high flyers, left in June last years with a First Class Honours Degree and went straight into his first job with design consultancy Cookchick.

The judges commented on Josh’s work as “showing great imagination, great ideas and great promise” and Josh now is really starting to think about his future steps; “Eventually I want to run my own design studio which creates the type of work that questions the norm and looks at things in a different light”.
http://www.designweek.co.uk/the-2014-design-week-awards-winners/3038402.article

The award is an incredibly special accolade and the team on the graphic design course are particularly proud of Josh and all his achievements to date. Last year he also won two Young Creative Network Awards and his work has been featured in a number of leading publications including Computer Arts and Digital Arts. Last year he was also presented with a special University award for his hard work and determination in his final year.
Bryan Clark, Head of Graphic Design adds; “To be recognised in such a way by leading industry judges at the awards this year is a real mark achievement. It also highlights why the course works so hard to engage with industry, so students can align themselves with the best talent and remain competitive for their career journeys. Visiting professional speakers, entering national and global awards and exhibiting in London as part of D&AD’s New Blood exhibition are all part of building contacts and making connections that can enhance career development”.

Whilst studying, Josh was always keen to make the most of the connections and events on offer and used these to great effect in getting to where he is now; “The New Blood Exhibition that Falmouth took our work to was a great step into the industry for me, and got me the vital interviews which then led to me getting my current job. I am having a great time doing what I love for a living and am very pleased and proud to have just picked up the Design Week Rising Star award. It was Falmouth’s philosophy about idea-driven design that I have to thank, as it is this type of work which the industry has awarded me for.”

This years new graduates are shortly to be exhibiting the their final degree show from the 13th to 17th of June in Falmouth and next month will be in London for the D&AD New Blood exhibition, running from the 1st to the 3rd of July.