News

Contact:
Casey Burry, cburry@cia.edu, 216.421.7404
Dan Cuffaro, dcuffaro@cia.edu, 216.421.7929

Immediate Release: September 24, 2009

The auto industry may have seemed glum for a while, but there is promise. There is a new generation of thinkers who are inspiring and influencing the future of design. One of them is Brian Peterson. A 2009 Cleveland Institute of Art graduate from Miami, FL, Brian is one of eight winners (from hundreds of entries and 32 countries) in this year’s prestigious Interior Motives Design Awards.

Brian Peterson graduated from the DASH (Design and Architecture Senior High) school in Miami in 2005 and from The Cleveland Institute of Art (CIA) last May with a BFA in Industrial Design. Brian’s award for Best Lifestyle Interior / Personalization is for a concept he developed while at CIA called the Nissan Mobile Maid, a design for the modern cleaner. Dan Cuffaro, head of CIA’s Industrial Design department, says Brian’s accomplishment "exemplifies his willingness to take a risk by building a concept around acknowledging the value and entrepreneurial opportunity of a house keeping service. We are so happy that Interior Motives recognized him."

The Interior Motives Design Awards, launched in 2003, are judged for innovation and talent by the world’s most experienced design professionals in the industry. The ceremony, on September 16, was hosted in the glamorous Cocoon Club in Frankfurt, Germany and celebrated the achievements of the next generation of car designers.

"Winning an Interior Motives Design Award is like winning an Oscar for a car designer," says Brian Peterson. "It was CIA’s discipline in teaching a product design approach that essentially led me to design a car for a maid service and win this award." Brian works as an auto interior designer at Chrysler.

Who: Brian Peterson, Miami Native and Cleveland Institute of Art industrial design graduate
What: The ONLY U.S. winner in the 2009 Interior Motives Design Awards
When: The IMDA ceremony announced the winners on September 16 in Frankfurt, Germany
How: An innovative vehicle design for a maid service.

The Industrial Design program at The Cleveland Institute of Art is one of the first and best of its kind. Pioneered by world-renowned designer Viktor Schreckengost, CIA’s ID program is consistently ranked in the top tier by Business Week and Design Intelligence.

Founded in 1882, The Cleveland Institute of Art is an independent college of art and design committed to leadership and vision in all forms of visual arts education. The Cleveland Institute of Art is located at 11141 East Boulevard in Cleveland, Ohio. For more information visit cia.edu or call 216.421.7000.

Sponsors of the Interior Motives Design Awards 2009 are Johnson Controls as premier, gold sponsors Autodesk, Retro Concept, Semcon, Stile Bertone, Technicon Design and Volkswagen, and silver sponsors Design Consulting and Futura Design.