1. INTRODUCTION
Starhotels S.p.A. (hereinafter referred to as the “Promoter”), leading company with a longstanding presence in Italy and abroad in the luxury hotel sector and always committed to sharing the secret of “Italian living” with its clientele, has launched “La Grande Bellezza” (The Great Beauty), a project whose fundamental objective is to highlight the creativity and rich heritage of Italian craftsmanship (hereinafter referred to as the “Project”).
Partners in the Project are Fondazione Cologni dei Mestieri d'Arte, OMA - Osservatorio dei Mestieri d'Arte di Firenze and Gruppo Editoriale, henceforth referred to as the Partners.
Within the scope of the Project and given the success of the first edition, the Promoter has decided to launch a second edition of the contest which, like the first, has the primary objective of enhancing the repertoire of Italian artistic crafts and master craftspeople.
Each edition will focus on a specific theme on which entries will be based. Candidates will have to present an artistic handicraft product they have made and which relates to the assigned theme. The themes selected will always be linked to the hospitality industry and may refer to settings (bar, lounge area, guest rooms, etc.) or to specific product categories (lighting, interior decor, etc.).
2. CONTEST OBJECTIVE
Through this Contest, the Promoter aims to reward the talent, expertise, design and execution capability and entrepreneurship of craftspeople working throughout Italy.
The cash prize is intended to support the development of the winner’s business, demonstrating that, with talent and commitment, it is still possible to run a successful business in the Italian art world.
3. CONTEST THEME
The second edition of the Contest focuses on the theme “The beauty of nature”.
Participants are invited to submit works on the theme of nature in the home and hospitality environments as a fundamental element of furniture and everyday living.
During a period in which the natural environment is suffering from an unprecedented decline, and with awareness of the damage to which it is exposed becoming increasingly
clear and widespread, the aim is to encourage the creation of works that draw inspiration from it, highlighting its great beauty: evoking even within an enclosed environment sensations that only nature can offer.
Participants are therefore invited to submit works on this theme, which may cover various areas related to interior decor, furniture and furnishing accessories, screens, etagére, vases and saucers, centrepieces, displays, decorations, trompe l'oeil, baskets, planters, wall pot holders, wallpaper and furnishing fabrics. Personal interpretations of the theme are also permitted, provided they are adequately justified.
4. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE WORKS, TECHNIQUES AND MATERIALS
The works must be freely created, contemporary and original, and they must not have already been entered into other contests.
Participants will be required to declare in writing that the work has been conceived and created by themselves and is their exclusive property.
All techniques and materials are permitted, provided that the work is completely or mostly created manually, based on the criteria and methods of master craftsmanship, and that the theme is respected.
5. ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
Participation is free of charge and reserved to craftspeople resident and regularly working in Italy. The organisers, promoters and sponsors of the contest, as well as the members of the panel and their relatives, are not eligible to participate in the contest.
6. PARTICIPATION TERMS AND CONDITIONS
From 1 November 2021 to 31 March 2022 those wishing to enter the Contest may do so through the Starhotels website, following the instructions provided. In so doing, they agree to comply with these Rules, print the disclaimer and return it signed on each page to confirm that they have read and accept the terms and conditions.
To enter, in addition to the duly completed and signed disclaimer, candidates must also submit the following, through the WeTransfer file transfer service, to the email address concorsolagrandebellezza@starhotels.it: -resolution photographs (portrait of the entrant and a few photos of the work and its creation process); the inspiration behind it and its characteristics (including weight and dimensions), the materials used and any other information considered relevant; either a Chamber of Commerce certificate showing their VAT number as craft entrepreneur, or a VAT number as a freelance professional or self-employed worker in the creative industries sector or as an architect or designer, or a VAT number as a social enterprise or consortium).
The Promoter is indemnified from any and all liability for entries that are incomplete or received after the Contest entry deadline. Each participant may submit one entry to the Contest; subsequent entries submitted by the same person will not be considered for the purposes of the Contest.
The Promoter may, at its sole discretion, reject entries that are incomplete or that do not comply with these Rules.
The Promoter declines any responsibility for non-compliance with the Rules when such non-compliance is caused by circumstances resulting from force majeure. In the event of exceptional circumstances beyond its reasonable control, and only if such circumstances render it unavoidable, the Promoter reserves the right to cancel or modify the Contest at any time.
The Promoter is indemnified from any and all liability for any damages, loss or injury sustained by the participant as a result of their participation in the Contest or following acceptance of the prize.
Each participant agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Promoter against all and any complaints and/or legal action resulting from their participation in the Contest.
7. MEMBERS OF THE PANEL
The Panel comprises the President of the Starhotels Group and the partners of the Project: Fondazione Cologni dei Mestieri d’Arte, OMA - Associazione Osservatorio dei Mestieri d’Arte, Gruppo Editoriale; experts in applied arts, design, lifestyle, art and culture, and the Art Director of the collections under the Starhotels “La Grande Bellezza” brand.
- Elisabetta Fabri, President and CEO of Starhotels;
- Alberto Cavalli, General Manager of Fondazione Cologni dei Mestieri d’Arte;
- Matteo Parigi Bini, Publisher, “Gruppo Editoriale”;
- Maria Pilar Lebole, Head of Associazione Osservatorio dei Mestieri d’Arte (OMA);
- Stefano Boeri, Chairman of Triennale Milano;
- Marva Griffin Wilshire, founder and curator of SaloneSatellite;
- Barnaba Fornasetti, creative director of Fornasetti;
- Ugo La Pietra, Artist, architect and designer;
- Livia Peraldo Matton, Editor-in-Chief of Elle Decor;
- Ippolita Rostagno, founder of Artemest;
- Sara Ricciardi, designer and Art Director of the Starhotels “La Grande Bellezza” collection.
The Panel as described above will select the winner, at its sole discretion.
8. EVALUATION CRITERIA
Based on the material received with the entries, the Panel will select 10 (ten) finalist works. The Panel will judge most favourably those works that reinforce the overall theme of Italian beauty and which demonstrate the happy union of manual work and creativity, with a contemporary reworking of obsolete and complex traditional techniques.
The evaluation parameters will comprise the following:
- relevance to the contest theme;
- conceptual and aesthetic content;
- craftsmanship and innovation;
- authenticity and originality; - territoriality and tradition.
A score of 1 to 10 will be awarded for each parameter and the ranking of the finalist works will be drawn up based on the total score awarded to each, based on the above criteria.
The Promoter will select the winning work at their sole discretion. The finalist works must be loaned to the Promoter to be exhibited during the final award ceremony, with date and place to be decided. They will subsequently be returned at the care and expense of the Promoter.
If interested, the Promoter reserves the right to consider purchasing individual works entered in the Contest, after signing a separate agreement to be formalised with the craftspeople.
9. PRIZE
The first-place winner will receive a cash prize of €10,000 from the Promoter, to be paid via bank transfer.
Without prejudice to the Promoter’s obligations regarding taxes, the winner will be responsible for any duties and/or charges, including taxes, that may arise from winning the prize.
The winner will receive an email notification (with read receipt) within 10 business days from the closing date for the panel’s decision, pursuant to above Article 8. If selection of the winner is postponed due to technical problems or for any other reason, the Promoter will resume normal running of the Contest as soon as reasonably feasible and declines any responsibility for such delay.
The winner must confirm acceptance of the prize via email within 5 business days from receiving notification from the Promoter.
If the winner does not accept the assigned prize within the designated deadline, the Promoter reserves the right to withdraw the prize and award it to the next participant in the ranking.
By confirming their acceptance of the prize, the winner agrees to be willing to participate in promotional initiatives after the Contest and consents to the use of their name and photos of themselves and their work in all Starhotels communications relating to the Contest/Prize.
10. RESPONSIBILITIES OF PARTICIPANTS AND COPYRIGHTS
Each participant, by confirming that they are the creator and owner of the work, exempts and fully indemnifies the Promoter and Partners from all and any liability arising from claims and/or legal action brought by third parties with regard to the originality and ownership of the work or part of it, which must be declared under the conditions of admission to the Contest.
The intellectual property rights relating to works submitted for the Contest shall continue to be held by the respective participants.
11. PRIVACY
With regard to the privacy policy, we refer to Regulation (EU) no. 679/2016 and to Legislative Decree 196/2006 “Privacy Code”, as updated by Legislative Decree 101/2018. Consequently, the Promoter will manage the data of participants for the activities relating to the business or promotional objectives of the Contest, in full compliance with the above-mentioned legislation. In particular, participation in the Contest requires each participant to read the disclosure on processing of personal data pursuant to Art. 13 of Regulation (EU) no. 679/2016, available on the Promoter’s website.
12. DISPUTES
The parties agree to find an amicable resolution to any disputes arising in relation to or in the implementation of these Rules. In the event in which this is not possible, the matter will be under the jurisdiction of the Court of Florence.
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