Julius Bučelis
Bluetooth speaker: BAT
Created: 2016
Manufacturer: ACME Europe
The speaker designed by Julius Bučelis (born 1985) is wireless, portable and light with a battery life of up to 8 hours. There are many more remarkable yet simple features which make this product innovative and user-friendly, as if following the ‘Ten principles for good design’ of Dieter Rams. Therefore, it is not surprising that this product won the Good Design prize in 2016. The speaker is designed for an active urban lifestyle, yet it is also perfectly suitable for quiet walks in nature, even in the rain (it is waterproof). One should mention here that its name was inspired by a mystical flying mammal, the bat. Bučelis likes to experiment, he draws inspiration by trying to understand the function of the product he is going to work on and to search for new solutions.
Since 2011, Bučelis has worked as a designer at ACME Europe, one of the biggest producers of computer accessories in the Baltic region. ACME Europe products designed by Bučelis include the screen cleaner Drop which won the IF Design Award and the Good Design 2015 prize; his Moon headphones and Peak backpack won the 2014 IF Design Award prizes. The designer is a graduate of the Department of Design at the Vilnius Academy of Arts, and has been actively creative since 2008, participating in professional activities and exhibitions. While still a student, he created his first furniture series Pinocchio, which won second place in 2008 at the international exhibition SaloneSatellite in Moscow.