ARTS Awards Presenters Announced Including HGTV’s John Gidding
ARTS Awards Presenters Announced Including HGTV’s John Gidding: Dallas Market Center and Accessory Resource Team, the creative home furnishings network, today announced the presenters for the 24th annual ARTS Awards. Special presenters include John Gidding, designer and TV host who has appeared on the popular HGTV series “Curb Appeal: The Block” and Shay Geyer, interior designer and design trend and style maven, who appears regularly on WFAA TV’s “Good Morning Texas” as well as representatives from ART and Dallas Market Center.
Born in Istanbul, John Gidding attended American schools in Turkey and Switzerland before Yale University, receiving a bachelor’s degree in architecture. He also earned a master’s degree in architecture from Harvard’s Graduate School of Design. Post-grad, John continued his love affair with design and globetrotting with architecture projects around the world, including working for a number of prestigious architecture firms and honing his sense of landscape and urban design. John enjoys design projects ranging from residential and institutional architecture to landscape and urban design. His portfolio includes his work on the Brooklyn Bridge Park, Union Square in New York, the campus plan for Carnegie Mellon University, and a pavilion for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
Born in Istanbul, John Gidding attended American schools in Turkey and Switzerland before Yale University, receiving a bachelor’s degree in architecture. He also earned a master’s degree in architecture from Harvard’s Graduate School of Design. Post-grad, John continued his love affair with design and globetrotting with architecture projects around the world, including working for a number of prestigious architecture firms and honing his sense of landscape and urban design. John enjoys design projects ranging from residential and institutional architecture to landscape and urban design. His portfolio includes his work on the Brooklyn Bridge Park, Union Square in New York, the campus plan for Carnegie Mellon University, and a pavilion for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
Shay Geyer has been a professional interior designer since 2001. Her mother, Beth Rafferty, founded IBB Design Fine Furnishings when she was just a toddler, so she was exposed to the world of design at a very early age. Her work has been published in ON and GrandLuxe magazines. Her projects range in style from modern lofts & high rises to French opulent estates. Shay’s unique style and ability to forecast design trends landed her the position of design expert for “Good Morning Texas”. She has been a part of the show since 2006 and is currently designing an exclusive collection of upholstery and soft good furnishings for IBB. Her blog, Design Detective, is available at http://www.ibbdesign.com/blog/.
Dallas Market Center President and CEO, Bill Winsor and Cindy Morris, COO, will also act as presenters along with ART’s Sharon Davis, executive director and Mindy Lowack, executive vice president of ART.
The presenters will speak from a crystal embellished podium that is complemented by a 14-foot-tall crystal strand curtain backdrop. Both were custom created by SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS.
ARTS Awards is the premier international awards program dedicated to recognizing home industry excellence and achievement in retailing, manufacturing, design and representation. The ARTS Awards culminate with a black-tie gala attended by hundreds of industry leaders and is held each year during the January Dallas Total Home & Gift Market (Jan. 16-22). The awards will be presented during a gala event on Saturday, Jan. 19 at the Hilton Anatole Hotel.
The 24th annual ARTS Awards are sponsored by EnLIGHTenment, Gifts & Decorative Accessories, Giftware News, HFN, Home Accents Today, Home Fashion Forecast, Home Lighting & Accessories, Overcoffee, Residential Lighting, Sustainable Furnishings Council and SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS. For additional information, please contact Lindsey Villarreal at 214-655-7654 or lvillarreal@mcmcmail.com.
About Dallas Market Center
Founded in 1957, Dallas Market Center is the world’s most complete wholesale marketplace. Within its marketplace of more than five million square feet, retailers from around the globe source products ranging from home furnishings, gifts, decorative accessories and lighting to textiles, fashion accessories and men’s, western, women’s and children’s apparel. With more than 50 markets each year attended by more than 200,000 retail buyers from all 50 states and 78 countries, Dallas Market Center offers hundreds of events and seminars geared toward helping retailers expand business and increase profits. As a result, more than $8 billion in estimated wholesale transactions are conducted annually within the Dallas Market Center complex. The Dallas Market Center website is available at http://www.dallasmarketcenter.com/.
About the ARTS Awards
The ARTS Awards is the premier awards program dedicated to the home industry. Twenty-five categories exist under the headings Manufacturer, Retailer, Product Designer, Sales Representative, Rising Star, Green, Academy of Achievement and Visionary. Anyone in the industry can nominate including manufacturers, retailers, sales representatives, designers, suppliers, consultants and other industry officials. Academy of Achievement and Visionary honorees are selected by an ARTS Awards committee each year. Companies that have won an ARTS Award five times are inducted into the Hall of Fame. Hall of Fame members are: BJ’s Home Accents, C.S. Wo & Sons, Distinctive Designs International Inc., Feizy Rugs, Fine Art Lamps, Global Views, Montaage, Natural Decorations Inc., Palecek, Paragon, Robb & Stucky and Schonbek Worldwide Lighting.
