Pinay wins America’s top design award

MANILA, Philippines - New York-based designer Lucille Tenazas – born and raised in the Philippines – was recently awarded the 2013 AIGA medal for her exceptional achievements in graphic design.

AIGA recognized Tenazas “for her prominent role in translating postmodern ideas into critical design practice; her exploration of the relationship between type, photography, and language; and the development and leadership of highly-respected design education programs – always with exquisite execution.”

First awarded to America’s top designers in 1920, this medal is the most distinguished in its field. Past winners include iconic designers Charles Eames and Ray Eames.

This year’s recipients include Stefan Sagmeister, Tobias Frere-Jones, Jonathan Hoefler, Richard Grefé, Jessica Helfand, and William Drenttel.

As the Henry Wolf Professor of Communications Design at Parsons The New School For Design in New York, Tenazas is now developing a new MFA Design and Technology curriculum, which focuses on design, craft, and technology.

In a post-win AIGA interview, Tenazas shared how teaching played a crucial role in her development as a designer: “The constant interaction of professional practice and teaching has been what’s marked my creative life…Teaching made me much more critical of my work in my own practice.”

Throughout her career in design, Tenazas makes an effort to remain current through constant learning. In her interview, she said: “I want to make sure that I am continually relevant to myself and to the people I work with, so that when they look at me they say: ‘Okay, you know she’s been designing for 30 years, but she’s still really hip. You know, her thinking is still with it.’ That’s how I want my work to be seen – that somehow it has a life beyond me.”