About DAFES AWARDS
We established the international competition program DAFES AWARDS to encourage creative achievements, share experiences and form guidelines for professional development in design, art, fashion, education and business.
DAFES AWARDS is awarded in five profiles, 20 categories and 80 nominations, as well as various partner nominations that we form together with educational and creative institutions.
About the nomination
This nomination accepts a variety of digital products, including online projects, web services, mobile and tablet applications, embedded applications (e.g., payment terminals, treadmil, refrigerators), multi-platform services, and similar digital products.
Project evaluation is based on the product’s concept, mechanics, interface, branding, identity, and communication. The quality of the work and its presentation also greatly influencing the evaluation of the project.
Terms of participation
Both concepts and projects that have been implemented or published between November 1, 2023, and October 12, 2025, are accepted for professional nominations.
While confirmation of publication or implementation is not required for a project to participate in the competition, the jury may request verification from the competition organizers in disputed cases.
Requirements to projects
It is recommended to present the idea and the mechanics of the product; the brand, its identity, and communication, user scenario, merch and other items created for the project.
All projects are submitted to the competition in the format of a longread-format report created on the DAFES platform.
Jury
Zakhar Den is the head of the online and offline «Design and Programming» and «Design and Promotion of a Digital Product» profiles at HSE ART AND DESIGN SCHOOL.
Vadim Bulgakov is the head of the Digital Product and Artificial Intelligence direction and the Artificial Intelligence Laboratory at HSE ART AND DESIGN SCHOOL.
Yan Zaretsky is a multidisciplinary art director and designer.
Tomilov Sergey is a design director of Zvuk Hi-Fi streaming service.
Kostya Gorsky is a Design Manager at Intercom (Dublin).
Siew Yen Teay — Industrial Design lecturer at the School of Media, Arts and Design, Asia Pacific University, Malaysia. Yen’s journey began with a childhood fascination for model kits, puzzles, and sketching, which grew into a lifelong passion for turning concepts into tangible experiences. He combines academic insight with hands-on creativity, mentoring the next generation of designers while pursuing his own design and model-making projects.
Guangyu Zhu — Professor and Master’s supervisor specializing in design and fine arts at the Communication University of Zhejiang. His research covers decorative arts, cultural heritage, rural design, and digital spatial innovation. Winner of Italy’s A’ Design Award and multiple national and provincial art prizes, author of eight monographs, and holder of four patents.
Muxing Gao — Associate Dean and Master’s supervisor. Postdoctoral fellow in Art Theory at the Communication University of Zhejiang. Awarded for leadership and teaching excellence. Author of textbooks and research papers; his works have been exhibited internationally.
Chao Yang — Professor and designer at the Communication University of Zhejiang, DAAD scholar, PhD in Visual Communication from the University of Macau. Winner of Red Dot Best of the Best, iF, and A’ Design Awards. Leads national research projects and serves as juror for global competitions.
Slava Yashkov is a product designer at My.com.
Vladimir Zimin is a former design director at Russian Post. He led several design teams responsible for Russian Post products for people, businesses, and automation of the company’s internal processes. In the past, he was a design director at Alfa Bank and a leading product designer at Yandex.
Sasha Ermoolenko is the director of the service design department at VK.
Mitya Osadchuk is a design director at Ivi, former creative director at VK.
Katya Tyukhai is the UX/UI team lead of Atom, co-founder and Head of Design Sizze.io (USA), Co-founder and Head of Design Capsula (USA-Mexico), founder of Design Regatta.
Referenсes
Registering and uploading a project
The step-by-step way to create an account and create a project on the platform to participate in the contest is described in the instructions.
Stages of the competition
Project submission deadline — October 12, 2025 Voting proccess — October 13 to 19, 2025 Invitation of participants and preparation for the ceremony — October 20 to November 7, 2025
Awarding ceremony
The award ceremony for the winners will take place on November 21, 2025
Contacts