Jill Warner loves contests.
This is nothing new.
Consider the tiki drink competition the Denver retailer won more than two decades ago.
Back then, Warner was an undergraduate at Portland State University in Oregon. She earned extra cash as a waitress.
Her challenge: Sell more tropical hootch than the next server and win round-trip tickets to the islands. Warner ended up cashing in two years’ worth of winnings to fund trips to Europe and Australia. “My poor grandma must have bought 100 drinks,” she says.
It follows that Warner’s store, Mod Livin’, is behind a new contest with the mission of finding Colorado’s best, locally made modern furniture, artwork or object.
More than 60 designers entered the contest, dubbed Denver by Design. Five judges — including this reporter — will pick their top choices. Design fans also can vote for their favorites through an online ballot.
“Good, clean competition is a good thing,” says Warner, who runs the modern-furnishings and -design store with her husband, Erick Roorda. “It motivates people.”
Judges have pared the entries down to the top 25, which are on display throughout August at Blank Space at Mod Livin’, the new gallery attached to the store, which is at 5327 E. Colfax Ave. Now the public can weigh in on the entries by logging on to voting/. Winners will be announced during an awards ceremony later this month.
“There are some really great, design-minded people in Colorado,” Warner says. She hosted the contest this month so it would coincide with the Denver Modernism Show happening Aug. 28-30. She intends for Denver by Design to showcase local talent, and help up-and-coming furniture makers connect with potential buyers and clients.
Denver industrial designer Brad Benefiel, for instance, is all about chairs. “I would have a house full of chairs if I could,” he says.
For the contest, Benefiel created “Ooli,” a shapely children’s seat made from Baltic birch and leather. It’s a substantial chair with a profile reminiscent of a closed fist, and has a hidden surprise inside. “I want (kids) to interact with the piece,” says Benefiel, a father of three.
His work generally incorporates ceramic sculpture, lighting elements and graphic arts. Benefiel says Colorado has a hearty subculture of people like him who are forging original furniture and housewares. Denver by Design aims to help unify that community, raise its profile, and draw attention to a new wave of collectibles.
“Not a lot of people know there are great modern products designed in Colorado,” Benefiel says. “This was an opportunity to get some exposure and recognition.”
He adds that too often interior designers and homeowners travel out of state in search of original modern furniture. “There’s this huge pool of people you can draw on” closer to home, Benefiel says.
Jared Hankins and Grant Louwagie of Blender Design Group submitted a simple painted wood bench topped with UV epoxy resin that makes the surface look like a slab of semiprecious stone. The partners typically create wall art for model homes and interior design projects. They only recently started fabricating furniture, which is sold through C.A.I. Designs at the Denver Design District.
The contest appealed to Louwagie and Hankins because of the cachet Mod Livin’ brings with it. Fans of the store view it as “the little vintage furniture business that could” after it opened eight years ago in a space next to a liquor store, on a spotty stretch of East Colfax, before a drunken driver plowed through the front window a few weeks after the grand opening.
Mod Livin’ quickly recovered. It has since grown and built a loyal following through community and charitable events, and an active design blog. The store also brought in new vendors and became an exclusive local distributor of hard-to-find modern housewares from abroad. Recently, Warner turned that old liquor store next door into her gallery.
“Mod Livin’ has a large following in the modern-furniture industry,” contestant Louwagie says. “We felt like participating would be a good way to get some exposure for our new furniture.”
Jeffrey Elliott is one of the contest judges. The award-winning, Denver-based interior designer is behind such sleek rooms as A Bar, Lotus and Monarch. He said the Mile High City is prime for a design contest like this one.
“It’s perfect for Denver as a larger city to do such a thing,” Elliott says. “You can already see that it’ll get bigger and more people will participate” in the future.
He adds that the time is right for Denver — with its maturing museum, gallery and restaurant scenes — to host a furnishings contest akin to those already established for builders and interior designers.
“The entries seemed innovative and high-quality,” Elliott says. Among his personal favorites: a hanging, cross-shaped wine rack made from contrasting light bamboo and dark mahogany.
Another judge, Sarah Semple Brown, was unsure of what to expect before she viewed the 60-plus entries.
“I thought I would be able to go through them very quickly because there would be so few that were great,” says Brown, a principal at Semple Brown Design, the firm behind such notable projects as the Ellie Caulkins Opera House, the Lowenstein Theatre redevelopment and The Corner Office restaurant.
But Brown, who collects furniture and artwork herself, saw several entries she would buy or use in her work.
“There was a lot of variety and craftsmanship and professionalism,” she says. “I was very impressed.”
Elana Ashanti Jefferson: 303-954-1957 or ejefferson@denverpost.com
Denver by Design
What: This is the first year of a juried contest to select the best modern design object, art or furniture created by a Colorado designer.
Where: Mod Livin’, 5327 E. Colfax Ave., Denver, 720-941-9292
When: The top 25 entries are on display at Mod Livin’ through August.
Details: There is also a series of related events called “5 x 5.” These are informal conversations among the artists, designers and the general public from 6 to 7:30 p.m. on the next four Mondays. Members of the public can vote on the entries at .
