Op.2-3 by Seungbum Ma Wins Silver in A' Design Award for Awards Design

Acrylic Trophy Reinterpreting Korean Joinery Receives Silver A' Design Award in Awards, Prize and Competitions Design

COMO, CO, ITALY, June 22, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The A' Design Award has announced Op.2-3, a trophy created by Seungbum Ma, as a Silver winner in the Awards, Prize and Competitions Design category. Op.2-3 was designed for the 2024 Seoul Living Design Fair and was selected following a rigorous evaluation conducted by a panel of design professionals, industry experts, and academics. The A' Design Award is one of the highly respected and well-recognized accolades in the field of design, and the Silver designation acknowledges works that demonstrate excellence and innovation. This recognition positions Op.2-3 among notable contributions to the practice of trophy and awards design. The achievement highlights the careful research and material exploration that shaped the final work.

The recognition of Op.2-3 holds relevance for the accolade and awards design industry, where the relationship between form, material, and meaning continues to evolve. By translating architectural and furniture joinery techniques into a smaller scale, the design demonstrates how traditional craft principles can inform contemporary award objects. The work responds to a growing interest in objects that engage viewers through sensory depth and intellectual reflection rather than ornamentation alone. For organizers, recipients, and audiences, Op.2-3 illustrates how a trophy can embody both structural clarity and cultural narrative. The design aligns with industry practices that value material experimentation and precise fabrication.

Op.2-3 draws inspiration from fundamental architectural elements, including beams, columns, walls, and slabs, reinterpreting traditional Korean joinery through acrylic. The form shifts with light and angle, at times glowing and casting stained-glass-like reflections, at others becoming a dark mirror or a silent, solid mass. Three versions were developed for the Special, Product, and Space Prizes, each rendered in RGB hues that symbolize light itself. Achieving the final result required extensive testing of transparency, translucency, opacity, reflectivity, dyeing, tinting, and color mixing, as well as the determination of tolerances that allow precise assembly without breakage. Acrylic was selected after wood, rigid paper, aluminum, and three-dimensional printing each presented limitations in fragility, warping, deformation, or incompatibility with the interlocking design language.

The Silver A' Design Award recognition may inform future directions for Studio SMA, encouraging continued exploration of material behavior and the translation of architectural language into objects of varied scales. This acknowledgment provides motivation for the studio to pursue further experimentation across architecture, interiors, furniture, and objects. The win reinforces a commitment to defamiliarizing the everyday and inviting renewed reflection through considered material and form. It also serves as encouragement for ongoing inquiry into the intersection of history, craft, and contemporary technique.

Project Members
Op.2-3 was designed by Seungbum Ma, who led the concept and design direction, together with Euijung Sung and Eunbin Lim, who contributed to the development and realization of the project.

Interested parties may learn more about Op.2-3 at the dedicated page prepared by the A' Design Award, where additional details about the design and its creators are available.
https://competition.adesignaward.com/ada-winner-design.php?ID=173325

About Seungbum Ma
Studio SMA, led by Seungbum Ma of the Republic of Korea, transforms everyday life into meaningful experiences that extend beyond sensory stimulation to provoke intellectual reflection. Each work leaves subtle traces, inviting viewers to infer intention and process, fostering curiosity and engagement. The studio defamiliarizes the familiar while carefully translating ideas into material and form, pursuing beauty with an inexplicable allure. Working across architecture, interiors, furniture, objects, installations, research, writing, and film, Studio SMA explores diverse sensory dimensions of human experience.

About Design House
Design House is a leading Korean media company specializing in lifestyle, design, and culture. Founded in 1976, it publishes influential magazines such as Luxury, Design, and House Full of Happiness, and hosts exhibitions and awards that promote design excellence across Korea. It is also the organizer of the Seoul Living Design Fair, the largest design event in Korea, which is held annually.

About the Silver A' Design Award Recognition
The Silver A' Design Award recognizes designs that demonstrate excellence, innovation, and a strong command of both aesthetics and functionality. Within the Awards, Prize and Competitions Design category, entries are assessed against criteria that include innovation excellence, design originality, aesthetic appeal, functionality efficiency, material sustainability, production feasibility, user experience, cultural sensitivity, and durability and longevity. Recipients are acknowledged for their contribution to advancing industry standards and for incorporating original innovations into their work. The designation reflects a notable level of technical skill, artistic ability, and creative insight. Silver A' Design Award winning works represent considered, professional designs that contribute positively to their field.

About A' Design Award
The A' Design Award is an international and juried design competition that recognizes accomplished work from designers, agencies, companies, and brands across the design industry. Entries are evaluated through a blind peer-review process and assessed by an expert jury panel of design professionals, industry specialists, journalists, and academics, based on pre-established evaluation criteria. Organized since 2008 and now in its eighteenth year, the competition spans all industries and welcomes entries from all countries. The ultimate aim of the A' Design Award is to recognize and promote superior products and projects that advance and benefit society, driven by a philanthropic mission to help create a better world through the power of good design. Interested parties may learn more about the A' Design Award, explore the jury, view past laureates, and submit their projects at the following url: https://designaccolades.net

Makpal Bayetova
A' DESIGN AWARD & COMPETITION SRL
+39 031 497 2900
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