The ADC was founded in New York in 1920 and acts as a not-for-profit organization with an international membership in visual communications. Its mission is to honor and inspire excellence in advertising and design, bring together creative leaders across the boundaries of their disciplines, and encourage the next generation of innovators. It organizes an ongoing series of events, with the ADC Annual Awards, now in their 87th year, being perhaps the most well-known.

The new ADC Sphere Award will honor "the most outstanding body of work featuring design innovation in a sustained program of design for a single client by a single design firm. This award will be given to design solutions that combine and convey brand relevance with consistent, impactful and emotional connections across a variety of touch points and will also inspire the next generation of designers."

Design Sphere entries will be separated into General and Non-Profit categories, with the jury to be chaired by no less a figure than Marc Gobé, CEO and Executive Creative Director of the international design and branding consultancy Desgrippes Gobé .

Last year, the ADC Annual Awards drew entries from 50 countries, with entries for the 87th round now open. Results of the competition will be announced at a ceremony at the ADC Gallery in New York in spring of 2008, with the winners exhibited around the world and also published in the Art Directors Annual 87.

More information is available on the adcawards.org site.