This Vilcek Prize Award trophy was created for a major new award program honoring outstanding achievements of foreign­born Americans within the fields of the visual arts and biomedical research. The first winners are artists Christo and Jeanne­Claude as well as cancer researcher Joan Massague. The trophy represents a visualization of the pinnacle an individual or group can reach; each trophy is individually designed and created for the winner using the latest in 3D digital imaging and plating techniques.

A collaboration between Stefan Sagmeister and Matthias Ernstberger of Sagmeister Inc., Nick Herman, Aly Khalifa and Robert Shanks of Gamil Design, and FineLine Prototyping, the Vilcek Prize design was in itself given an award by the AIGA for 365:28 in Typographic Design.

While the letter forms appear to thin into infinitesimal size, special mathematical models were created by Gamil to make sure a final product maintained this appearance while still being makeable. Further, a very modern process called SLArmor was used to digitally construct the piece and create an entire shell of metal to make it unique for every participant.

This year’s recipients of the Vilcek Priza are Dr. Inder Verma and Osvaldo Golijov.

Cordmaker Field of Dreams, or Conrad, is a Puli dog and won BEST OF BREED at the prestigious 2008 Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. Conrad is almost 4 years old (young for a Puli show dog) and is owned by Susan Huebner and Jackie Beaudoin.

Who knew such an exotic and talented superstar lived right here in my home town of Raleigh, NC?

According to the Westminster site, a Puli is a sheepherding dog from Hungary. His corded coat can reach down to the ground by the time the dog is 4-5 years old, and it starts forming naturally when the dog is a puppy of about 9-12 months of age. The Puli Club of America site goes further to say that it is impossible to stop the cording…there’s no such thing as a brushed Puli. But the owner does need to make sure each newly formed cord separates from the other cords or he will just be one giant matt.

One other thing…apparently it doesn’t take much longer to bathe a Puli than any other dog, but you have to dry the dog which can take a couple hours. Leaving the hair damp can lead to mildew. eeeew.