Sarah was today (2 June 2009) named the recipient of the UNSW Faculty of the Built Environment DesignTECH Regional Tour Award for the Western region.

Dr John Bennett, Chief Executive of the Office of the Board of Studies NSW, congratulated Sarah on receiving the Regional Tour Award for her project, Building block storage unit.

“As part of her HSC Design and Technology course, Sarah has created an innovative, brightly-coloured storage system for children’s toys, which is intended to make tidying up fun,” Dr Bennett said.

“This is an ingenious use of the concept of children’s toy building blocks to create a modular storage system which can be transformed into different shapes.

“It is an outstanding project, and we wish Sarah well in her future studies and career.”

The UNSW Faculty of the Built Environment sponsors the Regional Tour Award in recognition of talented young designers from regional Australia who ‘play a future role in designing for a sustainable future’.

Dr Bennett said some of the State’s best young designers were on show at the Parkes DesignTECH exhibition.

“Outstanding works by four students from the Western region, including Sarah Brown, have been added to the local version of the DesignTECH exhibition,” he said.

“They include an evening gown that can be converted into three different dresses, a unique unit for transporting horse tack and red cedar bedside tables inspired by antique furniture.

“These works join 15 other designs which featured in the DesignTECH exhibition at the Powerhouse Museum, Sydney, and are now part of the regional tour.”

The Board of Studies NSW runs DesignTECH in association with the Department of Education and Training to highlight the talent and skills demonstrated by HSC Design and Technology students.

Dr Bennett encouraged students and residents of Parkes and the Western region to visit the exhibition.

“DesignTECH gives the community the chance to see the innovative work and technological applications emerging from the Design and Technology curriculum in NSW,” he said.

“The projects, which meet an identified need in the community, are immensely creative, innovative and practical.”

The DesignTECH exhibition will be open in Coventry Room, Parkes Shire Library and Cultural Centre, Bogan Street, Parkes, until 12 June 2009.

The Parkes DesignTECH Exhibition Gallery Guide is now available to download. Parkes gallery guide (PDF, 8 pages, 1.2 MB)

Local students featured in DesignTECH exhibition at Parkes

Sarah Brown
St John’s College Dubbo
Building block storage unit

Huge building blocks double as a storage unit, offering a bright and decorative feature for a young child’s bedroom.

Julia Carman
Canowindra High School
The Three Butterflies

Julia created three evening gowns from a tight fitting, lined and boned bodice and an A-line skirt, both made from white satin, using different overlays.

Melanie Jones
All Saints’ College Bathurst
The Stud

Transporting horse tack is made easy with Melanie’s horse float-inspired device, which saves the rider time and energy.

Lachlan Turner
The Scots School Bathurst
Red cedar bedside tables

Lachlan used rare Australian red cedar timber to create beautifully crafted bedside tables inspired by an original chest of drawers from the 1880s.

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