Sasaki Honored by Fast Co.’s Innovation by Design Awards

Watertown, MA September TK, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ —

Sasaki was awarded an honorable mention for the 798 Arts District Vision Plan by Fast Company in its 2018 Innovation by Design Awards in the Timeless Design category as well as an honorable mention for An Evolving Ecosystem—a microsite examining the Massachussetts Public Library system—in the Graphic Design and Data Visualization category.

Innovation by Design is the only competition to honor creative work at the intersection of design, business, and innovation.

The awards, which can be found in the October 2018 issue of Fast Company, on stands September 18, recognize people, teams, and companies solving problems through design. Fast Company is honoring an influential and diverse group of 398 leaders in fashion, architecture, graphic design and data visualization, social good, user experience, and more.

Honorable Mention in Timeless Design: 798 Arts District Vision Plan

“Our intent was to create a framework for the potential of the district—not necessarily to detail every building or to program every specific use, but to allow for creativity to flow very organically,” says Sasaki landscape architect and principal Michael Grove, ASLA, reflecting on the Sasaki team’s vision for the arts district. “It is remarkable to have worked on the key ideas underpinning this district and to see how beautifully and faithfully they were implemented to realize the district’s potential. Now, to be recognized by Fast Company for our vision almost a decade later is tremendously gratifying for the whole team that had a hand in this work.”

Beijing’s 798 Arts District, known as ‘798,’ is a thriving mixed-use district, regarded globally as a successful example of industrial urban transformation. Sasaki completed the 798Arts District Vision Plan for the district in the mid-2000s, working closely with a Belgian philanthropist with a passion for contemporary Chinese Art and a consortium that oversees the pension fund for former factory workers in the area.

The plan laid the groundwork for the district’s evolution from a forgotten industrial remnant to a premiere destination. Today, 798 is consistently considered a benchmark for adaptive reuse and arts district development around the globe and is the third most visited tourist destination in Beijing, after the Forbidden City and the Great Wall.

To watch a video about the creation of the 798 Arts District Vision Plan, click here.

Honorable Mention in Graphic Design and Data Visualization: An Evolving Ecosystem

“This project was driven by the need to think creatively about what it means to visit a library in our regional, connected world and what that means for local communities,” says planner and Co-Director of Sasaki Strategies, Brad Barnett. “Early in the process, we found that a visual approach to data exploration helped us make connections and develop strategies for the libraries. It just seemed natural to extend that approach to the way we guide stakeholders through the ideas. It’s exciting to see civic institutions like libraries taking the lead on how we use data visualization to make design more strategic.”

Increasingly, libraries are taking on new roles in their communities and adapting to changes in demographics, technology, and other contextual forces. The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) commissioned a study to understand how Massachusetts libraries are being used today. The results of the study are captured in an elegant, interactive microsite, designed by Sasaki’s in-house graphics and Sasaki Strategies teams. Through stories and data mapping, An Evolving Ecosystem highlights patterns of usage and library branch characteristics across the state, and points the way to opportunities for libraries to continue to evolve to meet the needs of residents today and into the future.

To dive deeper into the data, visit the microsite here and read the whole report, here.

About the Innovation By Design Awards

“The future of design is about more than coddling users,” says Stephanie Mehta, editor-in-chief of Fast Company. “It’s about giving them power over their technology.”

Winners, finalists, and honorable mentions are featured online and in the October issue of Fast Company magazine, on newsstands September 18. Winners will also be recognized at Fast Company’s Innovation Festival at a special celebration on October 23, 2018.

Fast Company editors and writers spend a year researching and reviewing applicants for the awards. This year, winners and honorees were selected in the following categories: Apps and Games; Experimental; Fashion and Beauty; General Excellence; Graphic Design and Data Visualization; Health; Products; Retail Environments; Social Good; Spaces, Places, and Cities; Students; Timeless Design; User Experience; Web Design; and Workplace. Fast Company is also recognizing Google as the title’s first-ever Design Company of the Year.

To see the complete list of winners click, here.