The 2009 Worldcon committee has issued a press release titled: “Anticipation Announces Competition to Design the 2009 Hugo Award Base.” Full text is after the jump.
The World Science Fiction Convention has presented the Hugo Awards for achievement in science fiction for 55 years. They are named after author and editor Hugo Gernsback. A rocket has always been the central element of the trophy, and its manufacture has been standardized over the past several decades. The base design changes yearly, often reflecting the country, state, or province in which the Convention takes place.
Anticipation, the 67th World Science Fiction Convention, will be held at the Palais des congres de
Design of the Hugo Award Base
The winning proposal will conform to certain general and technical specifications. Those are:
– Bases may be made of wood, metal, lucite, or any other material which
has a fixed form. Materials that are fragile or change form with age or
extremes of temperature are not suitable.
– Bases must be designed in such a way that the silver Hugo rocket is an
integral part of the design. Rockets for the bases will be supplied
– Rockets will be bolted to the bases from below the tailfins and must
be able to stand on a flat surface. Hanging designs are not acceptable.
– Specifications on the Hugo rocket are:
English
13″ tall
2″ across from fin-tip to fin-tip
weight 3 lb. 2 oz.
bolt 5/16-18 machine screw thread
Metric
33.02 cm tall
5.08 cm across from fin-tip to fin-tip
weight 1.42 kg
bolt 5/16-18 machine screw
– Space must be left for a plaque or plaques indicating the convention,
winner, and category of award won in an easily readable 12 pt font.
– The winning design should have a theme appropriate to
– It should be kept in mind that designs will be traveling home in
people’s luggage. Fragile parts, fiddly bits, things that fall off, and
anything that would make airport security too nervous is strongly
discouraged. Designs shaped like sub-machine guns, for example, are right
out. Sharp pointy things are also a bad idea.
How to enter the competition
Entry in the competition is open to all. Design proposals must be submitted by
– Drawings, sketches, and/or a fabricated sample of the proposed base
unit.
– Cost estimate per base, and estimated total cost for the fabrication
and shipping of 25 base units.
– Lead time is needed for fabrication. The contest winner will be
announced in January 2009. Delivery of at least 25 bases will be expected by
– Your ability to either craft the bases or arrange for the work to be
done.
As a guideline, bases should cost no more than $150 each or less to fabricate. Photos of past Hugo awards can be viewed at http://www.thehugoawards.org/?page_id=10
To enter the competition, proposals should be submitted either electronically or via postal mail. Do not forget to include your name and contact information. The winning designer will also receive a full 5-day membership to Anticipation and will introduce their base design at the Hugo ceremony. Competition entries, regrettably, cannot be returned. The winning entry will not be unveiled until the Hugo Ceremony. Strict confidentiality will be expected of the winner as to the specifics of the design until the Hugo Ceremony at Anticipation.
Electronic submission.
Please email proposals to [email protected]. Include the information above and a JPG, TIFF or GIF image of your design.
Postal mail submission.
Please send the information requested above along with a sketch/drawing/sample base (or a disk or CD containing your sketch/drawing). The physical address is:
Anticipation
Attn: Diane Lacey, Hugo Base Design
C.P. 105, Succursale NDG
Questions? Write to [email protected]
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