The jury has valued his career in a craft profession in which he has managed to resignify such a traditional product by reinventing its use as a fashion accessory with new innovations in designs, materials and colors.
Ministry of Industry, Commerce and TourismThe awards ceremony took place today at the headquarters of the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism and was chaired by the acting minister, Reyes Maroto, accompanied by the Secretary General of Industry and SMEs, Raül Blanco, and the general director of the EOI Foundation, Nieves Olivera.
The importance of handicraft does not lie only in its cultural and artistic value. It is also a consolidated sector of the Spanish economy, which represents around 2.4% of industrial GDP and 0.4% of total GDP.
For the minister, these awards are intended to "make visible the craft sector, its creators, and recognize their contribution to society.
These awards convey the reality of a sector in continuous evolution and allow to give clear examples of quality and innovation, the incorporation of new designs and the improvement of techniques to satisfy an increasingly demanding consumer. All this puts national crafts in a solid position to face a promising new future. "
National Craft Awards
The National Craft Awards have reached this twelfth edition this year. They are convened annually by the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism through the Industrial Organization School (EOI) and its Fundesarte chair. In this edition, 90 applications from all over Spain have been registered for the five competition categories. The winners have been:
Ministry of Industry, Commerce and TourismGalician Paula Ojea has received the Product Award for her Cut & Fold collection. This series is characterized by its impossible geometric shapes. They are pieces made with stoneware, refractory clay and enamels without toxic elements, which evoke the paper cut and folded. The series allows incorporating more utilitarian designs (jugs, vases, bowls, plates, among others) that are used by haute cuisine chefs to serve their creations.
The master shoemaker and creator of the company Aldanondo and Fdez S.L have been awarded the Entrepreneurship Award. Through their company they have presented a project soaked in the intrinsic values of traditional crafts, combined with innovation and daring. The products achieved are very complete, add quality, traceability, sustainability, durability, distinction, comfort and user satisfaction.
The Federation of Artisan Organizations of Castilla y León (FOACAL) has received the Promote Award for Private Entities for its Unique project. This initiative is an engine to encourage artisanal employment among young graduates and people who could find their future professional crafts. It materializes in a set of meetings, seminars and round tables held in the Art Schools of Castilla y León for the promotion of the business activity of artisans in Castilla y León.
The Promociona Award for Public Entities has gone to the Provincial Council of Jaén for the Crafts in Progress experimental project, dedicated to handicrafts. Over a year, ten artisans and eight designers participated in twelve workshops (240 hours) to train in marketing and design, developing three collections with more than fifty products.