August 2000 Precious Metals & Bench/News Gold Goodness The World Gold Council’s first design competition in 10 years focuses on lifestyle trends The World Gold Council named 138 winners and runners-up in “Gold Trends 2000,” a design contest with nine categories based on the council’s 1999 trend report. The report looked at lifestyle trends and predicted how they would influence design in the new millennium (Professional Jeweler, September 1999, p. 62). More than 500 entrants competed for three grand prizes, 27 category winners and various runner-up prizes. The nine categories were Connecting, which addressed global networking and the mixing of cultures; Multi-Grouping, which identified people’s tendency to group themselves according to shared interests rather than cultural or ethnic similarities; Restructuring Identity, which looked at how we each create a personal style; Cyberliving, which examined the influence of computer technology on our lives; the New Moralities, which reaffirmed a commitment to living a moral life; New Genders, which identified the changing roles of women and men; Millennimania, which spoke of a renewed interest in spirituality; Luxury as Right, which examined the pursuit of pleasure; and Bioshifting, which addressed the forthcoming era of biological discoveries. Here are a selection of winners in five categories that reflect these trends. We conclude with the three overall grand prize winners. World Gold Council, New York City; (212) 317-3800. – by Peggy Jo Donahue Design Quest/Connecting Second Prize Nicolis Cola/Termine & Winer Boston, MA; (617) 325-4764 This design mixes solid German-style discs and fluid Italian-style connectors. Connecting identifies global networking and the mixing of cultures as an influential lifestyle trend. World Design/Multi-Grouping Third Prize Jane Bohan New York City; (212) 594-7103 This category identifies people’s tendency to group themselves by shared interests rather than cultural or ethnic similarities. These earrings would appeal to professional women the world over who are looking for a minimalist statement that is also ladylike and modern. E-Design/Cyberliving First Prize Robert Coin New York City; (212) 486-4545 This category examines the effect of computers and technology on our lives. The multistrand wire neckpiece represents the many jumbled wires that make up our lives these days, with white gold stations resembling small packets of information traveling along the curve. Neomorphing/Bioshifting First Prize Laura Moynahan New York City; (212) 260-5603 Ornamentation/Luxury as Right First Prize Gurhan New York City; (212) 213-3031 More is more, this gold piece suggests with its lush mix of gemstones and gold beads. The organic nature of the repeating design represents the growing influence of biological research on our daily lives. First Prize Overall Gurhan New York City; (212) 213-3031 Second Prize Overall Design Gold Group Hollywood, FL; (954) 921-8900 Third Prize Overall Boregaard New York City; (212) 826-3660