Karolina Kurek, Rana Desar & Patrice Yagen Win L.A.'s BritWeek Christopher Guy Design Awards

In conjunction with the grand opening of the new Christopher Guy showroom in West Hollywood, Saturday, May 5, and BritWeek 2012, Christopher Guy announced and celebrated the winner and runner-up of The Second Annual Christopher Guy BritWeek Design Award.

Karolina Kurek from the Otis Parsons School of Design was named the first place winner. Rana Desar of UCLA and Patrice Yagen of the Academy of Art were tied for second place.

The design competition required students to design a furnishing or decorative accent piece based on the remarkable creations of Philip Treacy, the celebrated haute couture hat designer. Students from more than 10 California design schools submitted their designs, which were judged and presented last night. The panel of judges included Philip Treacy, renowned haute couture hat designer; Christopher Guy Harrison, CEO, head designer and founder of Christopher Guy; Martyn Lawrence Bullard, celebrity interior designer and named one of the top 100 Interior Designers in the World by Architectural Digest magazine and Birgit C. Muller, three time Emmy awarding winning costume designer. Architectural Digest Magazine and Jaguar sponsored the grand opening celebration and guests sipped on Veuve Clicquot Champagne and Kalex wine.

The following students were also involved in this year’s competition:

Adriana Araoz-UCLA
Paulina Hermansen- Moorpark College
Amy Bush-Academy of Art
Kaylyn Wiggenhauser- Art Institute of California -Los Angeles
Evelyn Lee- Cal Poly- Pomona
Yuko Wirth-Art Center of College of Designs
Julia Bent-The Art Institute of California –Orange County
Joseph Kim- Cal State- Long Beach
Araceli Tostado-Academy of Art
Katherine Hendersen-Academy of Art
Denise Bohn-Cal State-Long Beach
Abigail Stone-Westwood College
Herencia Del Rio- Westwood College
Stephanie Huerta-Westwood College
Alexander Gonzalez- Westwood College
Cesar Martinez- Westwood College
Thanh Ngyuen- Art Institute of Orange County
Lucinda Pace- UCLA
Zane Kearney- Academy of Art
Grace Bratsos- Academy of Art
Tanga Milutinovic- Academy of Art
Jisun Lee- Academy of Art
Adrienne Browning- Academy of Art
Hallie Gray- Academy of Art

“It was fabulous opening this very special showroom in Los Angeles, especially coinciding with BritWeek,” said Guy. “This year we honored Philip Treacy for his services to the British design industry, as well as presented California design school students who entered our competition with trips to visit a prestigious design show in Europe and my Singapore design offices,” he added.

BritWeek organizes a program of events every spring in California to highlight and celebrate the links between the Golden State and the United Kingdom. The program encompasses film & television, music, literature, art, fashion, design, cuisine, retail, sport, science & technology, philanthropy and business links, and emphasizes creativity, innovation and excellence.

For more information please visit www.britweek.org.