Product
design awards from 2023 span the company’s extensive offering, honoring
excellence, innovation and outstanding sustainability efforts in the design of
outdoor site furnishings, lighting, and adaptable structure. Rising through the
rigorous selection processes, three products especially captured the
imaginations of juries in 2023: The Theory line of street and transit
furnishings, the Backdrop modular outdoor structure system, and the Typology
Collection of seating and lighting.
Winner
of multiple awards including a GOOD DESIGN® Award and Architectural Record's
Product of the Year, Theory was a standout in urban and street furniture in
2023. Theory is a collection of transit site furnishings designed by Scott
Klinker to elevate moments in motion by combining familiar streetscape elements
with expressive pieces that offer the aesthetic appeal of modern art. It
juxtaposes sculpture and functionality, using non-prescriptive design to
inspire playfulness and discovery, encourage unique interpretation by its
users, and spark designers’ creativity. "Theory is a ‘platform product’
that can be scaled and composed to fit the diverse needs of different
projects,” says designer, Scott Klinker. "The collection’s settings can
range from the highly artistic to the highly functional—from very abstract
forms that invite interpretation, to very prescribed forms that suggest one
clear use. This range of expression is achieved with a very minimal form
language, designed for absolute simplicity to fit into a variety of
architectural contexts.”
Another
multi-award-winner with recognitions that include two Gold Certifications in
the Grands Prix Du Design and Architectural Products’ Product Innovation
Award, Backdrop, an adaptable structure system of modular panels and
accessories designed in collaboration with KEM STUDIO, was also met with great
acclaim in 2023. Engineered for virtually endless layouts, functionality, and
degree of enclosure, Backdrop is designed to activate underutilized areas with
purpose and meaning, encourage creativity, and easily adapt to unique site
opportunities. "We're honored and thrilled to continue our collaboration
with Landscape Forms, creating product lines that connect people with engaging
outdoor spaces,” says Jonathon Kemnitzer, IDSA, co-founder and principal of KEM
STUDIO. "Backdrop has a way of making unique outdoor space easy. We're
excited that the initial response and the recognition from the design awards
competitions shares that philosophy of making space better outside, so people
can better enjoy the outdoors. We're excited that people see the value in
engaging the outdoors, and we believe Backdrop plays a big part in creating
these destinations that uniquely make life better,” Kemnitzer says.
Winner
of two coveted Red Dot Awards and the 2023 SIT Furniture Design Awards Design
of the Year, the Typology Collection was another product that particularly
resonated with juries in 2023. Designed in collaboration with Designworks, a
BMW group company, Typology is an innovative seating and lighting collection
that adds dynamic new dimension to any site, enveloping the visitor—both from
above and below—in an immersive design experience. Systematic and adaptable, it
lives comfortably in both new and existing architectural environments, guiding
the movement of traffic and creating unique, three-dimensional spaces that
invite and connect, surprise and inspire. “In cities we’re often lacking visual
perspective, limited by a closed-in and claustrophobic view of the world,” says
Tobias Adami, Creative Director at Designworks. “So our intention with this
collection is to play in both the vertical and horizontal spaces of urban
environments, to draw the eyes up into the sky, and to join the two domains
with signature design elements both in the air and on the ground.”
See the full list of all Landscape Forms’ awards received in 2023.
About Landscape Forms
Landscape Forms is
the industry leader in integrated collections of high-design site furniture,
structures, accessories, and advanced LED lighting. Since its founding in 1969
Landscape Forms has earned a reputation for excellent design, high quality
products and exceptional service. Headquartered
in Kalamazoo, Michigan, the family of brands includes Loll Designs located in
Duluth, Minnesota; Summit Furniture in Monterey, California; and Kornegay
Design in Phoenix, Arizona. It has
sales representatives throughout North America, South America, the United
Kingdom, Monaco, Australia, the United Arab Emirates and Asia. Landscape
Forms collaborates with renowned industrial designers and consultancies,
landscape architects, and architects to design and develop integrated
collections of products that address emerging needs and help create a sense of
place. Additionally, the company has formed global marketing partnerships with
select companies that share its commitment to design. Landscape Forms
has an installed base of products around the world. Clients include
municipalities, hospitality, residential, transit centers, corporate, college
and health care campuses; and familiar brand leaders such as Harvard
University, Linked In, New York Central Park Conservancy, Bryant Park, Google,
Coca Cola, Oculus, U.S. Tennis Association (USTA), Nike, National Museum of
African American History (Washington, D.C.), Barclays Center, Adidas,
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Microsoft, and Uber. Landscape Forms
has been named one of the Best Workplaces in Manufacturing & Production for
2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 by Fortune magazine, Michigan Manufacturer of the
Year for 2020 by the Michigan Manufacturers Association, and by 269 Magazine as
one of Southwest Michigan’s Wonderful Workplaces.