If necessity is the mother of invention, then the winners of EXHIBITOR Magazine's 32nd Annual Exhibit Design Awards must be a pretty needy lot. Because according to our judges, this year's winners invented some of the most creative exhibits and one-off elements the competition has ever seen.

Take the stand for Atelier Damböck Messebau GmbH. Challenged to generate buzz while focusing attention strictly on invited clients and prospects, designers devised an enclosed space whose sole entrance was blanketed by a wall of water. Or consider the design for Lumine Co. Ltd. To create a compelling, interactive experience within a 20-by-20-foot space, designers concocted a 15-foot-tall chest of drawers that captured visitors' attention from afar.

So bravo to this year's batch of needy inventors. May their designs inspire you to see your own needs and objectives not as hurdles, but as the impetus for invention.

EDGE AWARD D'art Gallery D'art Design GOLD AWARD Four-Part Ensemble Osram Opto Semiconductors Into the Woods Nippon Paper Industries Kidding Around Munchkin Inc. White Space Denso Corp. SILVER AWARD Water Management Atelier Damböck Messebau The Great Wall Intel Corp. Cloud Nine Google LLC Design of the Times Hearst Inc. Top Drawer Lumine Co. Ltd. BRONZE AWARD What Goes Around Impact XM Stick 'em Up Stikwood Story Boards Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions Fishbowl Effect Fairnet GmbH Turkish Bath Eczacibasi Building Products 2018 JUDGES FELIX BALLERSTEDT, former design director, Uncorked Studios JEFF BARTEL, executive art director, co-founder, Nemo Design CHRISTIAN FREISSLER, co-founder, Evolve Collaborative ROBB HUNTER, senior lead product and experience designer, Industry ROB WEES, brand strategist, Ziba Design Inc.