At its 2016 Art of Packaging Award Gala, a glamorous event that celebrates excellence in packaging design, Pratt Institute honored Jean Madar, chairman of the board and CEO at Inter Parfums, Inc., and introduced the recipient of the new Marc Rosen Scholarship for Packaging by Design, Damini Singh, an incoming first-year student in Pratt’s Graduate Communications Design program. Proceeds from the event, which was attended by 250 special guests, benefit the Marc Rosen Scholarship Fund for Packaging by Design at Pratt. Emceed by supermodel Carol Alt, the gala marked 27 years of the Fund, which has helped raise more than $3.5 million for scholarships for graduate packaging design students at Pratt.
The new Marc Rosen Scholarship for Packaging by Design will provide full tuition on the basis of merit to Singh. The scholarship may be renewed for a second year, making it Pratt’s only scholarship with the potential to cover the entire cost of tuition. Singh will begin studying for her graduate degree in Communications Design in fall 2016.
At the event, Madar, who was introduced by Gilbert Harrison, founder and chairman of Financo, Inc., accepted the Art of Packaging Award. For Madar and Inter Parfums, Pratt Institute’s Art of Packaging Award tops the list of many past professional honors and awards. The award is presented each year to a beauty/cosmetics company that has excelled in the art form.
Rosen teaches a course on cosmetic and fragrance package design, in which students are challenged to create a perfume bottle prototype, a scent card, box, shopping bag, and advertisement. To date, the Fund has provided scholarships to more than 100 Pratt students, many of whom have become industry leaders. This year’s student scholarship winners, whose fragrance packaging design work was on display at the event, are: Paula Ip (M.S. Package Design ’16), Talia Douaidy (M.S. Package Design ’16), Xinlu Liu (M.S. Package Design ’16), Fang Yi Chu (M.S. Communications Design ’16), Brielle Wilson (M.S. Package Design ’15), and Eugene Kim (M.S. Package Design ’15).
Image (L-R): Pratt Institute Provost Kirk E. Pillow, Pratt Institute President Thomas F. Schutte, Honoree Jean Madar, Pratt Institute Board of Trustees Chair Bruce Gitlin, Marc Rosen (photo: Andrew Werner)