For the “Water is Life” poster competition, students and young artists from all over the world were encouraged to look at the problem of the global water shortage and to turn their ideas into a poster.
The result surpassed all expectations: more than 5,000 artists from 83 countries adopted their own creative approaches, using a wide variety of different motifs to present their take on the message “Water is Life”. The competition aims to exhibit these works of art world-wide in order to bring the topic "Water is Life" to a wide public and to encourage greater awareness when using water.
Duavit was a sponsor of the event. Company chairman Franz Kook notes, “An intact environment is our greatest asset, and we must all do our utmost to ensure that it is protected. Water, air, soil – it’s about preserving quality of life and natural resources for mankind.” All Duravit manufacturing plants have comprehensive facilities that ensure that the water needed in production processes can be recycled, enabling the company to recycle up to 75% of this water.
“Wherever technically sensible, we cut all excessive consumption in order to use capacities where water means true quality of life”, says Franz Kook.
After an international jury selected the winning posters, prizes were awarded at the "Water is Life" exhibition premiere in the international context of the world’s leading trade fair for sanitaryware, heating and air-conditioning technology in Frankfurt, Germany; both were held at the stand of the main sponsor, Duravit. On World Water Day, the works of art were included in the United Nations’ official program of events to mark World Water Day in Cape Town, South Africa. The Chinese city of Nanjing also presented the posters as part of Nanjing Water Day 2011. Every day, the works of art move to a new location in Nanjing: from the lake landscape in the centre of the city to the park in front of the historic city wall, from the pedestrian zone to the library.
The competition and the resulting exhibition are a joint project organized by the University of the Arts/Berlin and the Nanjing Arts Institute/Nanjing, the Normal University/Hangzhou and the German Central Sanitary, Heating and Air-conditioning Association (ZVSHK). Bathroom manufacturer Duravit is the main sponsor of the competition. Ecological responsibility has always been enshrined in main sponsor Duravit's guiding principles. This applies to the use of materials, recycling and production.
For more information about the Water Is Life competition and to see all the winners, visit their website