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"I couldn't believe it was the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳," says Ghanaian trophy designer for ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Africa Radio Awards
The ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ World Service has commissioned young Ghanaian designer Jery (Jeremiah) Obuobi to design and cast the winning trophies for its first ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Africa Radio Awards competition.
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"I am honoured the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ has trusted me – a young, unknown designer – to play a unique role at this special event," says 25-year-old Jery. "I have listened to ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ radio all my life and so this opportunity is like a dream come true."
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"The biggest challenge is ensuring the trophies truly represent the strong brief that I was given – to reflect the vibrancy of broadcasting in Africa – and I am thrilled the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ has given me the freedom to come up with the creative solution.
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"We recently signed off the final design and I am now getting down to the most exciting bit which is bringing my ideas to life."
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Jery was just six-years-old when he first had aspirations of becoming a designer. He hated wearing the same shoes to school and promised one day to design and make his own.
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As he grew up he nurtured his natural artistic skills by sketching everything from comic book characters for friends to teaching aids for teachers at school.
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It was when a neighbour asked Jery to create gifts for three local artistes attending his party that Jery first knew that he wanted to make a living out of his passion. He created some unique pendants using metal that were a resounding success with the artistes. Soon most of the guests at the party were making requests to have one made for them.
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Today, Jery works across a broad range of design and with many materials to make possessions such as shoes, jewellery and lighting fixtures. He has collaborated with friends to form a clothing line where he designs clothing accessories such as belt buckles and tie pins and he periodically works with his university lecturer to design and make furniture.
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Jery also designs animated graphics and logos for local websites, his most prominent being the logo for the Association of Aerospace Engineering Students of Ghana.
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When Jery first received the call asking him to design the trophy he initially thought it was a joke: "I could not believe it was the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ on the phone and then I was nervous. A few years ago an Asian company asked me to design something for them but they went on to steal my ideas.
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"Not long after that a major US company showed an interest but because of my wariness I took too long to send my portfolio and lost the commission. Fortunately the awards Project Manager, Vera Kwakofi, convinced me it was for real and supplied a strong brief. After that I couldn't wait to get started."
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Jery studied Graphic and Textile Design at Tema Secondary School and Metal Product Design at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science And Technology. He regularly re-visits Nkrumah University to assist with lectures on Metal Product Design.
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The ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Africa Radio Awards celebrates the excellence of radio journalism across Africa. The finals will be held on Saturday 26 May 2007 at the Safari Park Hotel in Nairobi Kenya.
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Trophies presented will recognise the best Radio Station of the Year, New Radio Station of the Year, News Journalist of the Year, Sports Journalist of the Year, Local On-Air Campaign of the Year, Interactive/Talk Show of the Year and Young Broadcaster of the Year.
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Further information is available online at bbcworldservice.com/africaradioawards.
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Notes to Editors
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An image of Jery Obuobi is available upon request.
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³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ World Service Publicity
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