Interior Awards Q&A: Raimana Jones
Raimana Jones celebrates with his Student award.
We catch up with Raimana Jones, winner of the inaugural Student category award at the 2015 Interior Awards to see how he is handling the fame, the riches and the overall rock and roll that must have ensued after the accolade.
ArchitectureNow: How did you find the process of entering the Interior Awards last year?
Raimana Jones: I found it straight forward and simple. The format is similar to other design competitions which helps not having to reformat it. I thought it was very important to edit the project as much as I could to make it really clear for the judges.
ANow: Why did you do it … what did you think an award could represent to you professionally?
RJ: A lecturer of mine recommended me to enter. I thought it could help me progress in my career and I also thought it could help me start building a reputation within the design industry.
ANow: Did presenting live to a jury of experts make you re-think, review or pose any interesting questions about your project “Architecture of Coexistence: Regenerating Royal Oak through Urban Acupuncture”?
RJ: No, to be honest I don’t think it did, as the project went through so many critics and editing that it became really clear to articulate. There were some really nice comments though that I really appreciated.
ANow: How was it receiving the award?
RJ: It felt amazing! It was such an awesome feeling. I was very grateful.
ANow: What has happened professionally since the award?
RJ: I continued working on my design business and have lectured on digital fabrication at Auckland University of Technology and architectural design at the University of Auckland.
ANow: What are you working on at the moment?
RJ: At the moment, I am doing an Entrepreneurship Summer Lab program through Spark and the University of Auckland that is helping me grow my design business. I have recently established an online shop which sells some of my products and I am involved in making custom made furniture.
ANow: Would you recommend people enter the Interior Awards?
RJ: Yes, of course. It’s such a great opportunity to get some recognition in the design industry and it’s also a really cool competition process.
To be eligible for the Student category award, entrants must be aged 28 or under and be currently studying full time in 3rd, 4th or 5th year or recently graduated (end of 2015) in the fields of interior design, spatial design or architecture. Entries are
Entries can be submitted through the Interior Awards website until Wednesday 4 May 2016.
