The Submission by Blu Water Studio that won one of two Gold awards in the MIID Nippon Paint REKA Awards 2015.

THE Malaysian Institute of Interior Designers (MIID), in collaboration with Nippon Paint Malaysia Group, recently announced the winners of the MIID Nippon Paint REKA Awards 2015.

This year’s REKA Awards presented only two Gold Awards from 111 entries received.

One of the Gold Awards went to Blu Water Studio for its design of Scoop at Menara Dion under the Food & Beverage (Restaurant & Bars’ category).

Blu Water founder and chief executive designer Lai Siew Hong said, “I am proud of the team for coming through this far. Creating purposeful designs has always been in our hearts. It is great to be able to share our passion with our peers in the industry.

“Scoop represented our aspiration to turn an ordinary F&B outlet to one which is elegant yet offers a refreshing concept – depicting sections of the press room with clever plays of typography and excerpts.”

The other Gold Award in the Students’ category was won by Siau Chee Yung from Taylor’s University.

She conceptualised the interiors for the Ipoh Bike Café Hostel, preserving the original façade of a 1900s townhouse while introducing an element that sought to encourage travellers to discover Ipoh through cycling.

“The REKA Awards has established itself as platform for interior designers in Malay-sia to gain well-deserved recognition and accolades.

“The journey is challenging but the immense satisfaction of receiving an honour among peers is immeasurable. Great talent deserves great recognition,” MIID president Chris Yap Seng Chye said.

The entries were judged based on creativity and buildability.

“There is an overall improvement in terms of entries and quality of work submitted for this year’s competition. I was looking for winning entries that managed to marry uniqueness with a good, purposeful design,” said Choong

“Nippon Paint is honoured to be a collaborating partner in yet another prestigious instalment of the REKA Awards.

“I hope these recognitions will further inspire other up-and-coming professionals to set another new level in terms of standards and creativity,” said Nippon Paint Malaysia group assistant general manager (marketing) Alex Yoong.