Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq:ADBE) today announced the winners of its 12th annual Adobe Design Achievement Awards (ADAA) during a ceremony held earlier this evening at the DesignThinkers 2012 conference in Toronto, Ontario. The event was hosted in collaboration with Icograda (International Council of Communication Design), with distinguished designers Sean Adams and Noreen Morioka serving as the masters of ceremonies.

Tonight’s event honored students and educators whose winning projects were selected from 41 finalists out of nearly 5,000 total entries from 70 countries. Student graphic designers, photographers, illustrators, animators, digital filmmakers, developers and computer artists were invited to submit individual or group projects created with Adobe software. Winning students were recognized in 13 categories encompassing interactive media, video and motion, and traditional media; educators were recognized in three categories celebrating innovative teaching methods. All work by ADAA finalists was showcased this week in a special gallery at the DesignThinkers 2012 conference.

“In a globally competitive world, students who can express their ideas and solve problems in creative ways will be the most successful,” said Jon Perera, vice president of education, Adobe. “Recognizing top talent among next-generation designers is part of a broader commitment at Adobe to fostering creative thinking and expression in education.”

Adobe and Icograda partnered for the fourth consecutive year to attract submissions from the Icograda Education Network, and select an international judging panel of experts in design, art and technology.

“As we near our 50th anniversary, Icograda is proud to look back at what has been achieved with the Adobe partnership,” said Marilena Farrggia, managing director of Icograda. “Together we have provided a platform for an international presence, facilitated a network of industry expertise, and developed a mentorship program that fosters potential opportunities.”

Judging panel member Fernanda Saboia, creative director at Tatil Design, said, “Students’ accessibility to technology gives them so much freedom to test, experiment and really take risks in their efforts to create something very original. It is so beneficial for students to get recognition like this at the beginning of their career as it gives them the confidence to continue to innovate and push the boundaries of self-expression.”

Winning student entries were selected based on originality, effectiveness in meeting the communication objective and skill in applying Adobe products. Faculty submissions were scored on educational innovation and the development of applications to better an overall educational experience. View the 2012 judges’ commentary here.

Student Awards

• Animation: Ainslie Henderson, Edinburgh College of Art, Great Britain
• Application Development: Bram Monstrey , Hogeschool West-Vlaanderen (HOWEST), Belgium
• Browser Based Design: Vanessa Li, Sheridan College, Canada
• Game Design and Development: Mitchell Brien (group leader), Swinburne University of Technology, Australia
• Illustration: Yeni Kim, Royal College of Art, Great Britain
• Installation Design: James Coltman (group leader), University of the Arts London, Great Britain
• Live Action: Christopher Lavelle, Sunderland University, Great Britain
• Mobile Design: Kirsten Southwell, North Carolina State University, United States
• Motion Graphics: Michael Rigley, California College of the Arts, United States
• Non-Browser Based Design: Lee Soyoung (group leader), Hongik University, Korea
• Packaging: Richelle Rogers, York University/Sheridan College, Canada
• Photography: Pablo Jimenez, Academy Of Art University, United States
• Print Communications: Jeff Han, Art Center College of Design, United States

Faculty Awards

• Innovation in Interactive Media in Education: Anna Zyrianova, St. Petersburg State Academy of Art and Design, Russia
• Innovation in Motion and Video in Education: Hector Herrera, Ontario College of Art and Design, Canada
• Innovation in Traditional Media in Education: Kyuha Shim, Rhode Island School of Design, United States

Individual student winners and the leader from each group winner received a US$3,000 cash prize, winner’s certificate and a 3D trophy, plus roundtrip airfare/expenses to attend the DesignThinkers conference in Toronto. Additionally, individual winners received a copy of Adobe® Creative Suite® 6 Master Collection education version software, along with a one-year membership to the Adobe Creative Cloud™ that provides the capability to download and install any of the Adobe Creative Suite 6 desktop software and includes online services to help sync, store, and share files online. Each winning member in the group category received a one-year membership to Adobe Creative Cloud as well as his or her choice of Creative Suite 6 Design and Web Premium, or Creative Suite 6 Production Premium education version software. Both individual student winners and the leader from each group winner have been appointed to the Icograda Youth Advisory Panel and will receive a one-year mentorship with a design leader from the Icograda network. Faculty individual and group winners received the same respective prize packages as well as a US$3,000 educational grant for the faculty member’s institution.

All winning, finalist and honorable mention entries from 2012 can be viewed at the ADAA Gallery, along with entries from prior years.

About Icograda

Icograda, a partner of the International Design Alliance (IDA), is the world body for professional communication design. It is a non-profit, non-partisan, member-based network of independent organizations and stakeholders working within the multidisciplinary scope of communication design and expanded media. Founded in 1963, Icograda actively promotes the value of design practice, thinking, education, research and policy, representing more than 200 organizations in 67 countries and regions globally. For more information, visit www.icograda.org.

About Adobe Systems Incorporated

Adobe is changing the world through digital experiences. For more information, visit www.adobe.com.

© 2012 Adobe Systems Incorporated. All rights reserved. Adobe, the Adobe logo, Creative Suite and Creative Cloud are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.