Gorillaz animator in running for design award

The Gorillaz artwork by Jamie Hewlett has been nominated for a prestigious design award in the UK.

Gorillaz have already won prizes and sold millions and now the animator behind the virtual band is in the running for the design world's equivalent of the Turner Prize.

Jamie Hewlett, 37, who has conceived and designed the artwork, website and animated performances for Gorillaz since their launch in 1999, was shortlisted yesterday for the £25,000 Designer of the Year Prize.

His competition for the prestigious award will be Tom Dixon, the furniture designer, The Guardian newspaper and Cameron Sinclair, an architect who works in disaster-struck communities.

Announcing the list yesterday, Christopher Bailey, the creative director of Burberry who is a judge, said it was a "true indication of the breadth, depth and creativity of design in the UK today".

"Though often not immediately apparent, design affects everything we do. The shortlist reflects this, and the strength of the UK's design talent."

Alice Rawsthorn, director of the Design Museum which organises the award, said Gorillaz were obviously a huge phenomenon in music and entertainment.

Hewlett, who had previously created the comic book anti-heroine Tank Girl before joining forces with Damon Albarn, had produced a "really compelling and engaging collection of characters".

But with the album Demon Days, he had taken the project "many steps further," she said.

"His use of technology in the last year has been quite extraordinary in terms of imagination and innovation, both on the website, which is updated daily, and in performances. It took 30 animators and music-makers over three months to create the animated performance for the MTV awards."

Tom Dixon, 46, was shortlisted for developing new furniture and lighting designs for his own company, Tom Dixon Ltd, as well as for others including Artex, the Finnish furniture-maker.

But he has also proved important for championing a younger generation of designers at Habitat such as Ulrika Jarl.

"He's obviously been a very influential British designer for many years but 2005 was extremely prolific for him," Ms Rawsthorn said.

"He has started to do a lot of work in sustainable design, working with recyclable materials. He has produced some really ingenious exemplars of that which are as gorgeous and engaging as his other work."

These included a steel frame chair with seating made from giant rubber bands and a series of recycled bowls, plates and cups, Eco Ware.

The Guardian, which followed The Independent this year in moving to a smaller format, was shortlisted for "one of the most ambitious corporate design projects in re-designing a newspaper from scratch," Ms Rawsthorn said.

"They invested very heavily to the extent of commissioning an entirely new printing plant. It showed a real commitment to design as a solution to the broader problems of the newspaper market."

The final contender was named as Cameron Sinclair, 33, a London-born and educated architect now working in America where he co-founded Architecture for Humanity.

This has established a global network of humanitarian designers and architects who use sustainable design solutions to help crises- hit areas under the slogan 'Design like you give a damn'.

They have constructed schools, medical clinics and community centres in the South-east Asian countries hit by the tsunami a year ago and are now involved in tackling the problems caused by Hurricane Katrina in America and the earthquake in Kashmir.

Ms Rawsthorn said: "They really do work on the frontline of design. They're like design's Medecins Sans Frontieres. Wherever there's a disaster, they move in and they work with local people to find the most appropriate solution. It's really nice to reclaim Cameron for Britain."

An exhibition of the contenders' work will run at the Design Museum, London, from 4 March to 18 June.

A public vote will count towards the choice of a winner which will be made by a judging panel including Kevin McCloud, the television presenter, and Hilary Cottam, who won last year for her use of design in the public sector.

- INDEPENDENT