Kanye West takes on Pussyhat and pro-EU poster for Design of the Year
He has 22 Grammys and once declared himself the greatest living rock star on the planet. Now Kanye West has been pitched against the giants of the design world for a top prize.
The US rapper, married to reality TV star Kim Kardashian, has been singled out by Kensington’s Design Museum for its Design of the Year award.
The nomination relates to his 2016 chain of 21 pop-up shops, which sold merchandise for his Life Of Pablo album and had an outlet in Old Street.
West, 40, is one of 62 nominees in six different categories. Others include a team from Nike who made a hijab for Muslim sportswomen, and the German photographer Wolfgang Tillmans, who is nominated for his poster urging voters in the EU referendum to think about “where you feel you belong”.
Also nominated is the Pussyhat Project — a group of friends who picked up their knitting needles after the emergence of Donald Trump’s remarks about grabbing women “by the pussy” and created pink hats, complete with cat-like ears, as a symbol of protest. Thousands were made and worn for the Women’s March on Washington in January.
Other nominations include the flag designed for the 10 refugees who competed in last year’s Rio Olympics — a single black stripe on an orange background inspired by the colour scheme of lifejackets — and a children’s centre built in the Jungle camp in Calais.
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Guest curator Glenn Adamson said: “It has been such a downbeat year with just the refugee crisis alone but then you see how designers have reacted to those issues whether it’s the refugee flag, which is a symbolic response, or the Calais build on the front line of the Jungle. It is inspiring.”
The nominations will feature in an exhibition at the museum from October 18. A jury will decide on winners in the categories before choosing the Design of the Year on January 25.
Previous winners include the team behind the 2012 London Olympic torch. Last year’s winner was a flatpack refugee shelter made by Ikea and the United Nations.
