Open to professional architects and design students, the Annual Visionary Design Competition or AViD is now on its third year. With the theme “Breaking Grounds,” BluPrint challenges designers to conceptualize a National Pavilion for the Philippines. A co-presenter of PGDA 2011, BluPrint exude enthusiasm and support for local design talent.

As per the competition guidelines, the National Pavilion shall contain exhibits of Philippine culture, creativity and industry; as well as venues for performances. The pavilion shall reflect the values, aspirations, and achievements of the Philippines and Filipinos, with the goal of inviting visitors and investors along the tagline of : “The Philippines: We Got it All For You!” as an inspiration.

Check out complete details below or click here to view the PDF.

About BluPrint Magazine

BluPrint is the Design Sourcebook. It exists for designers and design enthusiasts, keeping you informed on the latest trends in local and international architecture, landscape architecture, interior design and the allied arts.

The website, bluprintmag.com, gives online users a peek into the printed issue by posting striking architectural photos and compelling write-ups. It also offers web exclusives such as Design Gallery, BluPages Directory, Downloads and Calendar of Events.

Visit http://www.bluprintmag.com

PGDA 2011 co-presenter Adobo Magazine will award the public’s favorite among this year’s finalists with a special edition red trophy A.K.A. the Adobo Award. Akin to the people’s choice award, voting is open until Monday, October 31, 2011 at 6:oo PM Manila local time via Facebook.

Simply view the works and “like” your favorites to cast a vote.  Click here to vote now.

Here is a look at the 7 student and 17 professional finalists. Click on a thumbnail for gallery view.

About Adobo Magazine

Adobo Magazine, the Philippine Advertising and Brand Communications magazine, is the leader publication for the advertising and marketing community. It’s the best resource for the latest news on advertising campaigns, current trends, industry issues, insights, the media landscape, consumer “hot buttons” and more. We profile the most influential ad people and showcase creative talents and their work. We share relevant case studies and feature stories that uplift and inspire both the professional and the student communities.

Every issue offers extensive news and features from the Asian region and beyond. It is is published bi-monthly by Sanserif, Inc.

Visit http://www.adobomagazine.com/global/index.php

Licensing images can equate to a hefty expense especially if you have to pay each time you need to use an image for a project. If you’re a designer on a budget, you might have already considered shooting your own photographs given the kinds of rates image libraries charge per download. As appealing as that might appear, the time and effort needed to produce a shoot can be hefty in itself.

Thinkstock presents a viable solution. For a reasonable monthly or annual fee, you can get access to millions of high quality photographs, vectors, and illustrations from a database of over 18 unique collections. With a Thinkstock subscription, you can browse images from some of the most recognizable libraries like Getty Images, iStockphoto, and Jupiter Images and download as much as you want given the monthly or annual subscription fee.

To illustrate Thinkstock’s services, here are three short, informative presentations.

1) How A Thinkstock Subscription Will Change the Way You Work

2) Why Choose Thinkstock

3) Image Subscription, Explained

Thinkstock is a part of Getty Images. GetCre8ive is the representative of Getty Images in the Philippines. They are Getty Images’ foot-on-the-ground in Manila – providing real-time support to advertising agencies, creative studios, marketing departments, graphic artists and other creative individuals and groups, and making sure that they have access to the highest quality of stock images, footage and music from the biggest digital media company in the world.

A co-presenter of PGDA2011, GetCre8ive is hosting the awards show on November 5, 2010 at the Decagon in Silver City, Ortigas. They have also granted the organizers use of the Thinkstock image library for PGDA promotions and for the show shenanigans.

Check out our magazine ad in BluPrint:

The show is open to the public and tickets are on sale now at discounted prices until October 28. Click here for more information. Awesome bands, free beer, raffle items, and great company awaits you. We hope to see you there!

About GetCre8ive

Getty Images is the biggest digital media company in the world with about 60% share of the global market for stock images, footage and music. GetCre8ive represents Getty Images in the Philippines and provides on-the-ground support to Getty Images clients.

Working very closely with Getty Images’ Singapore office, GetCre8ive extends image, footage and music selection, pricing, rights clearance and product delivery services to the Philippine market. GetCre8ive also ensures that Getty Images’ customers in the Philippines receive the latest updates from the Company.

Visit GetCre8ive at http://www.getcre8ive.com.ph/

Visit Thinkstock at http://www.thinkstockphotos.com/

Order your tickets to the PGDA Show on or before October 28, Friday with these 3 simple steps to avail of special rates and group discounts.

Find out who the winners are at the show on November 5, 2011, Saturday, 7:00PM at the Decagon, Silver City in Ortigas. Think of it as a community celebration of graphic design and the Filipino creative spirit at large.

3 Steps to Reserve Tickets:

1. Pay via Philippine Graphic Design Awards Inc. BDO Savings Account 00-1120-352-760 on or before October 28, 2011, Friday.
2. Email deposit slip to organizers along with reservation info:
   • Your Name
   • Your Organization
   • Number of Tickets You Want
3. Wait for your Confirmation Code from the PGDA Organizers (to be emailed within 48 hours).

Special Rates as Follows:

PGDA 2011 Judges [L-R] Brandie Tan, Rico Sta. Cruz, Ivan Despi, JP Cuison, Dan Matutina, Drew Europeo, AJ Dimarucot, Nico Puertollano, Leigh Reyes, and Katwo Puertollano at the co.lab common room.

 The space is equipped with all the things a fully functional office can provide, but in an atmosphere that is far more comfortable and far slicker than your average corporate box. There is a common area that feels more like a living room library where you can work, a well-stocked and neatly clad kitchen area, and a number of meeting rooms of various sizes that can fit 4 to 20 people comfortably. On top of that, they offer butler/messenger services.

One day in each month, they open their doors to the public for an afternoon of co-working and collaborating in what they like to call a Jelly. Drop in on the next one to see how you like it. Keep tabs on their FB page to find out when the next Jelly is.

It’s definitely worth a peep. Visit http://colabmanila.com/ to learn more about them and browse some pictures from the judging process.

Here are the standard packages available:

About

co.lab serves as a hub to a collaborative community that share the same values of entrepreneurship, creativity, and integrity. This shared workspace is ideal for freelance professionals, home office workers, startup businesses, entrepreneurs, solopreneurs, and graduate students.

Connect

4/F Optima Building, 221 Salcedo Street. Legaspi Village, Makati City 1229, Philippines
tel: + 632.759.5000 / local 115
fax: + 632.759.3270
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Don’t miss out on an evening of great company, great music, and of course, great graphic design. Order your tickets today!

Discount on tickets until October 28, Friday. 3 Simple steps to order online. Click here to learn more. Find out who the winners are at the show on November 5, 2011, Saturday, 7:00PM at the Decagon, Silver City in Ortigas. Think of it as a community celebration of graphic design and the Filipino creative spirit at large.

3 Steps to Reserve Tickets:

1. Pay via Philippine Graphic Design Awards Inc. BDO Savings Account 00-1120-352-760 on or before October 28, 2011, Friday.
2. Email deposit slip to organizers along with reservation info:
   • Your Name
   • Your Organization
   • Number of Tickets You Want
3. Wait for your Confirmation Code from the PGDA Organizers (to be emailed within 48 hours).

Discounted Rates as Follows:

The creative industry at large is a populous wilderness where only the strong and adaptable can thrive. With the internet as a norm, a global marketplace of prospective clients is easily within reach but congruently this landscape is also infested with competitors. More and more every day, in fact, as we’ve seen in our campus tours, participation in community fairs, and interaction in our social networks.

An amalgam of technological advancements, ease of access to tailored creative courses/workshops, and events like the Graphika Manila Conference and Manila Design Week are paving highways for those who are keen to delve into the radical world of design – and they’re rocking up in droves. Even prior to launching PGDA, we’ve seen awesome works by Filipino graphic designers who stretch the boundaries of design ingenuity. Many have been featured in premiere design publications and communities abroad but in the Philippines they go by relatively unnoticed.

PGDA was created as a pro-active response to this conundrum. We’re here to honor the wildest minds in the field of visual communication and celebrate the Filipino creative spirit at large. We wish to foster the Pinoy graphic design community and work to create growth opportunities for our winners. The exposure our winners get thanks to our media partners BluPrint Magazine, Adobo Magazine, and Rogue Magazine (and more to come, fingers crossed) immediately puts their work in the public’s eye. Moreover, online publishing of our winner’s look-book is viewed by tens of thousands of individuals the world over.

Student winners immediately get noticed by the industry’s top creative heads and exponentially up their chances of scoring the jobs they want whether it be as part of an agency or as a freelancer. It’s also a point of advantage when applying for grants for further studies. Professional winners get distinction from their peers and can justifiably demand more moolah for the work that they do. It would potentially be easier to score clients from abroad who are rabid in their efforts to outsource creative services due to the recession that many western countries are experiencing.

Our program is designed to level the playing field for freelancers, boutique agencies, and big ad agencies to go head-to-head. Given the 13 categories of PGDA 2011, it is important to note that the selection of winners is not a matter of who is better than whom. Each of the works is assessed based on individual characteristics and merits, and is not put up against other entries. This way, it is possible to have more than one top prize winner for each category.

The submissions process is simple and it shouldn’t take you more than an hour to complete. All entries are coursed online. If anything, the most time-consuming process might be selecting which of your works to send in. Here’s a simple 5-step guide to getting your entry into our mailbox. First and foremost, a friendly reminder: you have to be a Filipino citizen to join PGDA.

1)      Choose Your Entry

• Preview the works you created from August 1, 2010 – July 31, 2011 and evaluate which one/s you want to send in. You can send in as many entries in as much categories as you like for as long as they were created within this time frame. Fees apply to each entry you send in.

2)      Identify which Category Your Entry Falls Under and Download the Proper Entry Form

• PGDA 2011 has 13 Categories open to professional and student entries alike. Each category has a corresponding Entry Form  and Submissions Template. Make sure you download the right entry form. Read through the complete Rules for a thorough description of the categories.

3)      Identify if it is a Student Entry or a Professional Entry and Acquire Endorsement from School/Client.

• A student entry is graphic design work done for class, as a course requirement, or for a school-based activity. These activities can include org work like a poster designed for a student council campaign or possibly for an athletics event.Together with your student entry, you need to attach a letter of endorsement from your school authority. This is necessary to show us that you were in fact enrolled during the time your work was created. This can also be a copy of your official registration form.
• A professional entry is graphic design work that was commissioned and used by a client. If you are a student and someone outside of school hired you or tasked you to design for them then that would be considered a professional entry.Together with your professional entry, you need to attach a letter of endorsement from your client or agency. This statement of approval is necessary so as to avoid potential complications in light of copyright infringement.  Only entries that are for Self Promotionunder Category 1 are not required to submit a letter.

4)      Pay for Your Entry via BDO

• The fee for each Student Entry is PHP 500.00 while the fee for each Professional Entry is PHP 1,500.00
• Payments should be made via Banco de Oro as a cash deposit to Philippine Graphic Design Awards Inc. Savings Account No. 00-1120-352-760. You will be given a deposit transaction receipt which you must scan and keep.
• Payments made after the deadline will not be refunded. Also, there is no refund for paid entries that were not submitted in time.

5)      Complete Entry Form and Email to submit@pgdawards.com

• An Entry (including Entry Form, Submission Template and required documents) must not exceed 10 MB.
• All fields in the Entry Form are required. There is a field where you are asked to explain in 50 words or less how your work responded to the design objective. Think about what you write here to give the judges a clear understanding of your entry. There is also a field wherein you must digitally paste your Deposit Receipt from BDO as proof of entry.
• Artwork must be pasted digitally onto the Submission Template provided with the Entry Form and should not exceed a resolution of 300 DPI per image. A maximum of ten (10) Submission Templates (or “Templates”) are allowed per Entry for any of the Categories.
• Once complete, save your file as an Adobe PDF format using a CMYK color profile with this file-naming convention: Category Number and Entrant’s Full Name (e.g. Category13_Jose_Marc_Reyes_PGDA.pdf)

That’s not too difficult, is it? We’ve removed the hassle of having to print out an entry form and snail mailing actual works. If you do want to send in actual pieces, you can do so on the last week of September but only after you have paid and sent in your digital entries.  Before you prep your entry, read our Submissions page to make sure that you didn’t miss anything.  Don’t hesitate to get in touch with us if you need help, we’re more than happy to lend a hand. Just email hello@pgdawards.com or chitchat with us on Facebook.