History
The purpose of "Good Design Award" (formerly "Good Design Selection System" by Ministry of International Trade and Industry-sponsored until 1997) can be summarized as "attaining the improvement in qualitative of lives and the advancement of industry through design." However, the subjects to attain this purpose, for example what should be put its priority or what role is expected to design, change according to time to time. "Good Design Award" has changed the structure flexibly in response to such subject.
The pace of "Good Design Award" is also recognized as a milestone of design and industry of Japan as you can see in the following.
The G-Mark system was established in 1957 to the background of problems regarding international intellectual property rights, specifically in connection with copied merchandise, its aim being to "stimulate the creation of products with a high level of originality." However there was little general awareness at the time of the concept of design, and design played almost no part in the activities of most companies. Therefore the members of the jury initially had to run around from company to company to collect outstandingly designed products for themselves.
The G-Mark system thus got off the ground as a system intended to lay on the table in a high-handed manner the criteria for what constitutes good design and, on the basis of these criteria, to stimulate an awareness of the importance of originality.
As more and more companies began to implement their own design activities, in 1963 the G-Mark system changed over to a system open to general submission. It was from this stage that the administrative authorities stated their clear objective of using design to encourage exports.
Japanese exports grasped a share of the market because of their outstanding quality and low price, although they shared the same functions as products manufactured elsewhere. But, as far as design was concerned, the emphasis was placed not so much on the pursuit of originality as on thoroughness of manufacture through design. G-Mark assessments were concerned with products in their totality from this perspective.
The first 20 years after the system was initially created saw decisive results, with consumer awareness of the G-Mark rising to 65% and inroads made in awareness among corporate management in the consumer good sector. In the 1970s, as industry underwent major structural change, electric goods and electronic devices leaped to the forefront to replace the furniture, interior goods, and daily sundries that had to that point been the main products bearing the G-Mark logo. Over this same period, product design standards also rose substantially.
Against the backdrop of these trends, the Grand Prize, Category Prizes, and other special awards were added to the G-Mark system in 1980 and conferred on particularly outstanding designs selected for the Good Design Award that year. These special awards are intended to single out products leading the way in Japanese design innovation. One of these, the Long-Selling Good Design Prize, is meant to once again commend superiorly designed products that have remained on the market for an uninterrupted 15-year period (now reduced to 10 years) since first being awarded a Good Design Award. Our mission is not merely to applaud designs that stand out in the crowd at any given time, but also to highlight those designs that, though subtler, endure over many years.
In 1984, the range of products considered for G-Mark status was expanded to encompass "all industrial goods."
At the time, a myriad of "superiorly designed" household appliances and other consumer goods were crowding onto the market, and at the same time consumers were developing a discerning eye for outstanding product design. These developments allowed consumers greater satisfaction in terms of the quality they enjoyed in their private lives. In other areas, however, this was not the case. A significant gap between the quality of consumer goods and the quality provided in the spheres of work and such public sectors as healthcare and education, for example, became evident. In response to the emerging gap, the G-Mark system adopted the objective of "ensuring quality in all aspects of life," and toward this end further incorporates design in capital goods, healthcare, education, and the public sector.
Broadening the Good Design focus, effectively expanding the design market, as well as introducing the design methods that had been developed in the consumer goods sector into those sectors in which design had yet to take hold. The G-Mark system proved to be the most effective means of promoting the transfer of these technologies.
At the start of the 1990s, Japanese design standards had reached certain levels in almost all product fields. But design capacity in countries such as South Korea and Taiwan also began to show marked improvement, and the products of these countries became skillfully adapted to the needs of the market. On the other hand, new design trends began to emerge in Western countries at the forefront of design as part of an attempt to enhance social value. In order to establish a leading position for Japan in terms of international standards, the G-Mark system held out as its next objective the setting of global standards in terms of interactive design (i.e. design that enters into a dialogue with the user), universal design (design that is non-discriminatory when used), and ecological design (sustainable design with consideration given to the global environment). This new approach was intended to elevate the already established standards of product design onto a yet higher plain.
In 1998, the G-Mark system was privatized in the context of administrative reform.
This process of privatization involved attempts to fuse different specialized areas of design so that companies' designers could become the foundation for sharing future types of design without relying on governmental authority (establishment of an architecture and environment design category and communication design category), and attempts to assess positively new business based on design (establishment of new frontier category).
The pace of "Good Design Award" is also recognized as a milestone of design and industry of Japan as you can see in the following.
1. Foundation of the System
The G-Mark system thus got off the ground as a system intended to lay on the table in a high-handed manner the criteria for what constitutes good design and, on the basis of these criteria, to stimulate an awareness of the importance of originality.
Left: Rice cooker by Toshiba, 1958
Right: Soy sauce pot by Hakusan Porcelain, 1961
2. Promotion of Export
Japanese exports grasped a share of the market because of their outstanding quality and low price, although they shared the same functions as products manufactured elsewhere. But, as far as design was concerned, the emphasis was placed not so much on the pursuit of originality as on thoroughness of manufacture through design. G-Mark assessments were concerned with products in their totality from this perspective.
Left: Sori Yanagi Butterfly stool by Tendo Mokko, 1966
Right: Vacuum cleaner by Matsushita Electric Industrial, 1965
3. Seeking "Superiorly Designed Products"
Against the backdrop of these trends, the Grand Prize, Category Prizes, and other special awards were added to the G-Mark system in 1980 and conferred on particularly outstanding designs selected for the Good Design Award that year. These special awards are intended to single out products leading the way in Japanese design innovation. One of these, the Long-Selling Good Design Prize, is meant to once again commend superiorly designed products that have remained on the market for an uninterrupted 15-year period (now reduced to 10 years) since first being awarded a Good Design Award. Our mission is not merely to applaud designs that stand out in the crowd at any given time, but also to highlight those designs that, though subtler, endure over many years.
35mm Single Lens Reflex Camera by Olympus, 1973
Right: Scissors and Paperknives by Hayashi Cutlery, 1974
4. Ensuring "Quality of Life"
At the time, a myriad of "superiorly designed" household appliances and other consumer goods were crowding onto the market, and at the same time consumers were developing a discerning eye for outstanding product design. These developments allowed consumers greater satisfaction in terms of the quality they enjoyed in their private lives. In other areas, however, this was not the case. A significant gap between the quality of consumer goods and the quality provided in the spheres of work and such public sectors as healthcare and education, for example, became evident. In response to the emerging gap, the G-Mark system adopted the objective of "ensuring quality in all aspects of life," and toward this end further incorporates design in capital goods, healthcare, education, and the public sector.
Broadening the Good Design focus, effectively expanding the design market, as well as introducing the design methods that had been developed in the consumer goods sector into those sectors in which design had yet to take hold. The G-Mark system proved to be the most effective means of promoting the transfer of these technologies.
Left: Passenger car Civic by Honda, 1984
Right: Air compressor unit by CKD, 1986
5. Ensuring "New International Standard"
Left: Shower unit by Matsushita Electric Industrial, 1997
Right: Interior building materials by INAX, 1997
6. Solicitation of Activities with Design-Initiatives
This process of privatization involved attempts to fuse different specialized areas of design so that companies' designers could become the foundation for sharing future types of design without relying on governmental authority (establishment of an architecture and environment design category and communication design category), and attempts to assess positively new business based on design (establishment of new frontier category).
Left: A-POC by Miyake Design Office, 2000
Right: Sendai Mediatheque by Toyo Ito and Sendai-City, 2001
Assuming that the role of design in industrial society has been to produce added value, its role today has become to produce value itself. Design should present value hypotheses that assert that a particular lifestyle is going to be enriching and, while retaining the support of consumers, these hypotheses should be realized by working on manufacturers, distribution and the administrative sector. From subordinate to independent agent: the role of the G-Mark system in the 21st century is to provide the underlying support for this change in status.
Good Design Award is operated by Japan Industrial Design Promotion Organization