NPYDA: Priceless opportunity to learn from Ed Calma
MANILA, Philippines - Mention the name Calma among architecture professionals and you’ll definitely elicit admiration, awe and most of all, recognition. That’s because the father-and-son tandem of Lor and Ed Calma has been a formidable force in architecture. Lor Calma is an architect and interior designer of legend, and has been translating the modernism’s minimalist form into a Filipino context since the ’50s throughout the ’70s. The younger Calma, meanwhile, has made a name for himself, stepping out of the shadows of his iconic father.
In his 20 years of experience in the fields of architecture and interior design, Ed Calma has joined competitions himself and received accolades from industry peers and the government. A graduate of Columbia University in New York, he received the Ten Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) award in 2002. Calma and his team also won for the country two gold medals for the Philippine pavilions at the Aichi Expo 2005 in Japan and once again at the Expo Zaragoza 2008 in Spain. Last May, the Mind Museum, a science museum his team designed in Bonifacio Global City, received a Thea Award for Outstanding Achievement. It is also first science museum in Asia to receive the accolade.
In a few months, two students in architecture and interior design who would receive the first Nippon Paint Young Designer Award (NPYDA) in the Philippines will get an internship in Lor Calma & Partners, where Calma is a managing partner. NPYDA, a recognition program in Asia that shines the spotlight on young specifiers who want their work showcased in both the local and international arena, will also send the winners to Japan for a cross-country learning program.
Calma, who is also the head judge for the interior design category of NPYDA 2014, cannot wait to guide the winners during their internship at his firm. “We’re partners with Nippon Paint, so this is a big deal,” he said. “It’s an international competition so we’re looking for talents here in the Philippines that would be able to compete worldwide. I believe our students have a fighting chance because you can see from the work, the passion they have, the amount of time they work on projects.”
What Lor Calma & Partners could teach the winners is something they won’t learn in school, he said. “The challenge is how to mediate between academe and the real world. For example, how do you present to your client. When a student doesn’t know how to speak before a large group of people, how the hell will he be able to convince a bunch of guys to build your idea?”
The winners will also be exposed to how an architecture and design firm develops their talents. “Most of the guys I have here have offices already. Some graduates can design but they cannot put up an office because they do not know what to do,” he shared.
During the six-month internship of the winners, Calma hopes to share his experiences and guide them on to how international juries would look at their projects. “I see a lot of work out there, I read through a lot of competitions, and I’ve gone through contests myself abroad so there’s a certain way they look at their projects, and also how to present a project — they have to be concise, clear and direct.”
He also wants to show that architecture and interior design are not dictatorial fields. “It’s all about collaboration so during brainstorming sessions, they will see that we pick the best ideas from the team and synthesize it. That’s how designs evolve,” he added.
Even Gladys Goh, group general manager of Nippon Paint Malaysia Group, was amazed by this distinct quality of Filipino architects and interior designers during the launch of NPYDA here. “We’re actually very surprised and very happy that they have come in with such great support. We don’t get this much support from other countries and I think these associations see the value of such competitions. It’s a lot different because they’re very participative.”
For information, visit www.youngdesigneraward.ph .
