Best armchair
Flair O’ Maxi by B&B Italia
Italy

The Flair O’ Maxi is a new iteration of B&B Italia’s 2021 Flair O’ chair – and the rightful winner of our best armchair award. We love it for its simplicity: its stately plinth and swivel combined with comfortable padding. “The key idea for this particular form was ‘lounging’,” Monica Armani, the chair’s designer, tells Monocle. “But that’s a very broad notion. Last year, suddenly inspired by Italian dresses from the 1960s, I decided to change the proportions of the seat.” 
bebitalia.com

Best bar
Bar Vitrine by Frama
Denmark

Designed and run by furniture brand Frama, and with a menu devised by a former Noma chef, Bar Vitrine occupies a 1960s-era brutalist building. “We loved the space’s uniqueness,” says Frama founder Niels Strøyer Christophersen. “We wanted it to feel warm, like entering someone’s home or kitchen.” Dark and light wood interiors balance the exterior’s metal and stone. A communal birch table is at the bar’s centre, while tables along the windows are complemented by Frama’s 01 chairs. 
barvitrine.dk; framacph.com 

Best portable light
Snowman 15 Portable by ILKW
South Korea

The Snowman15 Portable marks South Korean lighting brand ILKW’s wireless debut. This design features a polycarbonate resin shade, giving it a balloon-like, join-free silhouette. Kwon Sunman, creative director of ILKW, says he developed the portable light for adaptable and outdoor use. “The body, shade and integrated led, which is capable of producing a wide range of colour temperatures, all come together,” he says. The lamp not only replicates natural light but can evoke different atmospheres according to its owner’s mood. 
ilkwdesign.com 

Best in the kitchen
Expressive series oven by Gaggenau
Germany

German home-appliances manufacturer Gaggenau’s latest is a sleek oven from the Expressive Series. “The kitchen is now often part of the living room,” says Gaggenau industrial designer Alexander Stuhler. “That means you might have a view of it from your sofa. So it’s important to design appliances that you want to look at.” Here, that means a simplified user interface, smooth joints and a floating control ring – a combination that lets you show off your cooking skills and your taste.  
gaggenau.com

Best for versatility 
Studie chair by Fermob 
France

Fermob’s versatile oak-and-metal Studie chair is the perfect stackable number. It was created by French designer Tristan Lohner as a seat that’s fit for the dining room but just as easily used in other situations. “When I pick up a pencil, I aim to get closer to the concept of service,” says Lohner. The concept of service is wonderfully broad. We can see this chair in a French bistro, an auditorium or piled up five-high after a party. 
bebitalia.com

Best bookshop 
Good Company Bookshop 
Portugal

Good Company Books is a newcomer to Lisbon’s bookshop scene, focusing on English-language titles and serving coffee, baked goods and wine. “We missed the kind of space where you can sit down, read a book, work or meet a friend over coffee,” says American-born Samuel Miller, who opened the bookshop last November with his Brazilian partner, Giovanna Centeno.
goodcompanybooks.com 

Best train fit-out 
TGV InOui by Nendo and Arep 
France

French state-owned rail service SNCF’s soon-to-launch TGV InOui trains have a new look, courtesy of France’s Arep and Japan’s Nendo. This is principal Oki Sato’s first transportation design and it features curved surfaces, a modular layout, warm lighting and a muted palette – its understated elegance a welcome departure from other trains’ utilitarian monotony. Our favourite detail? The lemon-yellow lamp from TGV’s prior design remains, but with a bulbous shade typical of Nendo’s playful style.
sncf-voyageurs.com 

Best camera 
Sigma BF 
Japan

For its combination of austere beauty, technical prowess and ease of use, we salute the Sigma BF, a digital camera from the iconic Japanese lens maker. Sigma CEO Kazuto Yamaki had a very specific aim in mind: a return to the beginnings of photography, when a camera was no more than a lens and a black box. “For a lens manufacturer like us, the lens is the true star,” says Yamaki. “We felt that the camera body should be as simple as possible, much like the camera obscura.”
sigma-global.com 

Best hospitality fit-out 
Finlandia Hall by Fyra 
Finland

Though a central part of Helsinki’s cityscape, Alvar Aalto’s 1971 Finlandia Hall always felt remote to the city’s residents, who knew it only as a conference centre – until now. Finnish design studio Fyra has opened it up to the public with a new bistro, café and shop. The bistro features original Aalto chairs and lighting, complemented by marble tables and an oak bar. The café and shop are bathed in natural light. “When you design for a protected building – and an Aalto one, no less – you’re a custodian of heritage,” says Eva-Marie Eriksson, Fyra’s co-founder. “But this building isn’t a museum. Ensuring that it’s used is the best way of honouring Aalto’s legacy.”
fyra.fi 

Best retail installation 
‘Je t’aime comme un chien’ by Le Bon Marché 
France

Le Bon Marché’s retail installation “Je t’aime comme un chien” was a love letter to dogs of all shapes and sizes. The pedigreed Paris department store was given a fetching makeover recently, featuring cutouts of hounds, mastiffs, retrievers and poodles gazing longingly towards the treats on offer. The commercial team unleashed its creativity, assembling an impressive assortment of items for dogs and their owners from more than 200 brands. These ranged from Barbour raincoats to a poodle-motif necktie from Cinabre. “It was the exhibition that generated the most enthusiasm among both our staff and our customers,” says Elodie Abrial, Le Bon Marché’s commercial director.
lebonmarche.com 

Best in production 
Kasthall 
Sweden

Founded in 1889 in Kinna, a historic textile hub in southern Sweden, Kasthall continues to operate from the same factory and design studio where skilled artisans and designers bring every rug to life.“Our factory in Kinna is the heart of our brand,” says CEO Mirkku Kullberg. “The artisanal pride and generational expertise in our team define us. Without them, we would lose not just our legacy but our identity.” 
kasthall.com 

Best retail addition 
Alaïa’s London café and bookshop 
UK

A new café and bookshop on the top floor of French fashion house Alaïa’s London flagship is a welcome development in the retail landscape. An aluminium table occupies the centre of the café, which serves flat whites and matcha lattes with pastries from London bakery Violet. The bookshop is curated by the team behind Claire de Rouen, a popular east London spot for titles on art, photography and fashion.
maison-alaia.com 

Best playground 
Yirran muru playspace 
Australia

When Shellharbour’s town council planned an educational space to recount the local Dharawal Aboriginal people’s history, they tapped landscape architect Fiona Robbé for a playground design. “You should experience a good playground for its own sake but a deeper didactic meaning is there if you want it,” says Robbé of the project, whose design functions as a miniature map of the Dharawal people’s region. Blue zones represent the nearby ocean and lake, sandpits symbolise the beach and coast, and a large stone semicircle represents the Illawara escarpment.
architectsofarcadia.com.au 

Most democratic design 
Mofalla Easy chair by Ikea 
Sweden

Swedish furniture company Ikea has built an archive of accessible, democratic design since 1943 – and from this, back by popular demand, is the Mofalla chair. First made to the design of Denmark’s Niels Gammelgaard in 1978, this foldable number features a simple, appealing combination of canvas and chrome.“It’s also very practical,” says Karin Gustavsson, the project’s creative lead. “I believe that there’s always a need for lightweight, easy-to-use furniture for extra seating.” And thanks to Ikea, this example is available to everyone.
ikea.com 

Best branding
27/4 by Yorgo & Co
France

Graphic designer Yorgo Tloupas’s branding work on entrepreneur Paul Dupuy’s 27/4 building in Paris creates a sense of cohesion across the drinking-and-dining hub’s three floors. Tloupas developed bespoke signage and typography for everything including customised fire-safety notices and alcohol-licence information. “The overall effect works on a subconscious level,” says Tloupas. This impressive attention to detail sets a benchmark.
27quatre.com; yorgo.co

Best artistic installation
‘On Weaving’ pavilion
Saudi Arabia

“It’s a given that places of worship are spiritual and ethereal,” says Charles Kettaneh, co-founder of East Architecture, referring to the practice’s modular musalla – an open area used for prayer in Islam. Titled “On Weaving”, it’s an exploration of the idea of transience, adds Kettaneh’s fellow co-founder, Nicolas Fayad. “Musallas have never been studied as architectural typologies,” he says.
eastarchitecture.net; akt-uk.com

Best incubator
UAE Designer Exhibition
UAE

Cities such as Abu Dhabi and Dubai have long imported star architects and designers from across the globe for major works. But the UAE Designer Exhibition, which took place during last November’s Dubai Design Week, is shifting the narrative. “We want people to know that design’s potential here is quite large,” says Omar Al Gurg (pictured), who curated the most recent exhibition, spotlighting 30 local talents. About 22,500 visitors saw the show, helping to change the Gulf’s design narrative. 
dubaidesignweek.ae

Best hi-fi
RA03 by Rudy Audio
Denmark

Monocle spotted Rudy Audio when it debuted at last year’s 3 Days of Design festival in Copenhagen: we were taken by its gorgeous speakers, amps and turntables with chiselled surfacing and exquisite joinery. A collaboration between Søren Rose Studio, furniture maker Københavns Møbelsnedkeri and a Danish technician, this hi-fi features speakers hand-made in Denmark by Scan-speak. “We went the road less travelled,” says Søren Rose, the founder of his eponymous studio.
rudyaudio.com; sorenrose.com

Lifetime achievement
Marva Griffin
Italy

For more than 25 years, Venezuelan-born, Milan-based curator Marva Griffin has been helping to develop design talent from across the globe. In 1999 she founded Salone Satellite, an exhibition within Milan’s Salone del Mobile trade show that spotlights projects by young practitioners under the age of 35. It has nurtured the careers of designers such as Cristina Celestino, Sebastian Herkner and Oki Sato – an on-going achievement that’s worthy of celebration. 

Best bedframe
MC-1 by ReFramed
Denmark

It pays to be flexible in the bedroom. Copenhagen-based practice ReFramed’s sleek and modern MC-1 bedframe is a case in point. Created in collaboration with Swiss industrial designer Michel Charlot, it features a chunky steel frame that holds the mattress and four simple cylindrical legs. There are two powder-coated finish options (ivory or moss green) and sprung slats that are supportive and remain flexible for added comfort. 
reframedbrand.com

Most playful design
Aço collection by Ghome
Portugal

“I don’t think about products but rather what they can do to the spaces that they inhabit,” says Gonçalo Prudêncio, founder of Portuguese design firm Ghome. Case in point: Aço, which exudes playfulness through bold shapes and colours.
ghome.pt

Residential architect of the year
Manuel Cervantes
Mexico

It’s appropriate that we’re meeting Manuel Cervantes, our residential architect of the year (though his practice encompasses much more), in his studio. “I live next door, so it’s an extension of my home,” says Cervantes. His residence and studio is filled with books, artwork and objects that “shape the way that we discuss projects”, says the architect. “It’s a space for thinking and connection, not just work. Sometimes it’s easier to communicate an idea with a painting or a material sample than through a drawing.”

Best retail display
Tojiro Knife Gallery
Japan

At Tojiro Knife Gallery in Osaka, every detail is a celebration of traditional Japanese craft. In particular, the design riffs on yoroi-bari cladding, a method of construction inspired by samurai armour that involves weaving metal plates with silk or leather cords. The knives are lined up on magnetic shelves, held up by clever notches. “If a product is exceptional, the space must be equally refined,” says the shop’s designer, Katata Yoshihito.
tojiro-japan.com

Best exhibition design
Gallery of the Kings
Italy

Museums of ancient history can sometimes feel a little dusty and stale. That’s why the bold and unconventional Gallery of the Kings at Turin’s Museo Egizio caught our eye. David Gianotten and Andreas Karavanas, partners at Dutch architecture firm OMA, designed the layout in collaboration with Andrea Tabocchini Architecture. “These statues hold a lot of importance and we didn’t want to keep them in the dark,” says Gianotten.
oma.com; andreatabocchini.com

Best glassware
Fit by Aldo Bakker for J Hill’s Standard
Ireland

Dutch designer Aldo Bakker’s on-going collaboration with J Hill’s Standard, an Irish maker of contemporary cut crystal, is underpinned by their shared admiration for form and the use of glass. Their cup-and-carafe combination, named Fit, can be stacked and comes in three colours: grey, clear and opaque ochre. “We want to re-establish the glass industry in Ireland,” says Anike Tyrrell, the founder of J Hill’s Standard. “We’re not interested in revisiting what’s already been done a thousand times.”
jhillsstandard.com; aldobakker.com 

Best gadget
TP-7 field recorder by Teenage Engineering
Sweden

Teenage Engineering’s palm-sized TP-7 audio recorder has us wondering how we ever went without it. Its centrepiece is a motorised “tape reel” that allows you to pause recordings, control the menu navigation and more. This highly intuitive device is making waves.
teenage.engineering

Best project evolution 
Rita Lee Park by Ecomimesis 
Brazil

All too often the Olympic Games leave host cities an urban legacy of white elephants. Not so in western Rio de Janeiro, where the landscape architects at Ecomimesis Soluções Ecológicas transformed the grey pedestrian thoroughfare that was the Olympic Way into a fun and colourful park named after the late Brazilian queen of rock, Rita Lee.  
ecomimesis.com.br 

Best storage solution 
Util 
Portugal

When it comes to steel storage solutions, options tend to fall into two extremes – either industrial-grade efficiency or uninspired, budget-friendly office staples. Enter Util, a Portuguese brand striking a balance between functionality and elegance with a thoughtfully curated and design-conscious collection. 
thisisutil.com 

Best design partnership 
Holder Objects 
Chile & Germany

Berlin-based design store and gallery Holder Objects brings new and archival Latin American design to Europe. This exchange stems from the Chilean duo behind it, Trinidad Davanzo and Camilo Palma. “Latin America’s unique geographical position is a bridge between European, indigenous and African influences,” says Davanzo. Eminent talents on the duo’s radar include Venezuelan architect and designer Jorge Suárez-Kilzi and Italian-Uruguayan maker Matteo Fogale.
holder-objects.com 

Best lamp 
Bellhop Glass T by Barber Osgerby for Flos
Italy 

The familiar shape of UK studio Barber Osgerby’s Bellhop Glass T throws a warm, uniform light wherever it sits thanks to its layers of opaline glass. The new iteration of the lamp is also dimmable: when turned down low, the glow it gives is almost ethereal. “I wanted to concentrate on a light that can act as a central focal point in a space, that enhances an environment rather than just illuminating it,” says Osgerby.
flos.com 

Curator to watch 
Zanele Kumalo 
South Africa 

Zanele Kumalo is an invaluable member of South Africa’s design scene, platforming the work of local creatives through her work as curator of Design Week South Africa – a new fair that took place for the first time last October across Johannesburg and Cape Town. “What drives me is helping young creatives find a firmer footing in places where they haven’t had access,” she says. “There’s such a wealth of talent in this country.” 

Design Week South Africa’s strength lies in Kumalo’s curation that includes emerging talent as well as bigger players. Although in its early days, the fair has already garnered international attention – and it has also fostered domestic pride.
designweeksouthafrica.com

Best sports facility 
Gerland Aquatic and Sports Centre 
France

When Lyon-based 4_32 Architecte was tasked with updating a 1930s outdoor pool in their hometown’s Gerland sport complex, the architecture firm was guided by a desire to enhance the experience of sport for people of all abilities and ages. 
The scope of the project involved retaining the 10-metre diving tower and the 33-metre pool as well as building offices and training facilities for the city’s professional rugby club. “What made this project interesting is that we needed to accommodate a wide spectrum of people, from young swimmers to high-profile athletes, all in one place,” says the practice’s co-founder Claire Bertrand. “The result aligns with the vision of Tony Garnier, the site’s original architect, who believed sport was part of a healthy lifestyle and should be accessible to all.” 
432.archi 

Best first-class cabin 
La Première by Air France 
France

When Air France unveiled its new first-class cabin, La Première, in March, expectations were sky high. They were met. We’re most impressed by the airline’s ability to design a new seating solution that feels spacious. The muted tones, red accents and curtains remain but a full 3.5 sq m of space – 25 per cent more than before – has been added. “It’s very elegant and fits the brand,” says Benjamin Smith, Air France-KLM’s CEO. “We are quite confident that we can remain at the top of the European space in first class.” Air France spent three years refining the suite, which features a chaise longue that can transform into a two-metre-long bed. La Première’s new cabins take flight from Paris to New York this spring.
airfrance.com 

Best civic building 
Siège du Conseil de la Concurrence 
Morocco 

Reflecting centuries-old heritage in the design of a new building is a tough brief. But Rabat-based Prism Architectes have found a way to meld traditional details with contemporary requirements in its design of new headquarters for Morocco’s Conseil de la Concurrence, an institution that aims to ensure transparency in the country’s economic relations. 

Key architectural features include a méchouar (a central area inspired by traditional pathways), courtyards and shading devices. These features are enhanced by the use of stone, wood and intricate metalwork that reference Morocco’s traditional vernacular. 
prismarchitectes.com 

Best barbecue 
Phil by Ethimo 
Italy

Italian design brand Ethimo and Maltese-born designer Gordon Guillaumier’s concept for an outdoor kitchen just made your next summer barbecue significantly better. Part of the Phil collection, which includes a sink and induction-hob option, this sizeable, cylindrical grill-on-wheels is available in an olive green or a sepia black, with pleasing teak details. We think that Phil is the perfect summer party guest – free enough to go where the evening takes him but decorous enough to know exactly what is needed and when. Phil has us longing for a hot day when we can sizzle some steaks and throw back an ice-cold spritz. This is outdoor design at its best: uncomplicated, efficient and tailored to improving people’s lives. Bring on the summer. 
ethimo.com 

Best material innovation 
Sungai Design 
Indonesia

Since Gary Bencheghib and his siblings co-founded the river clean-up nonprofit Sungai Watch in Bali in 2020, they have collected more than 2,000,000kg of plastic waste. Rather than sending it to landfill, they have been transforming it into chairs. 

The manufacturing process involves cleaning each plastic bag and melting them into uniform sheets that can then be sliced and layered to build furniture. “We launched a product that was 100 per cent made from recycled plastic, to carry as much weight as possible,” says Bencheghib. “It’s a symbol of how much plastic we’re collecting from rivers.” 
sungaidesign.com 

Best community initiative 
Casa Ria by David Chipperfield Architects 
Spain

Chipperfield’s Fundación Ria, a contribution to his adopted city of Santiago de Compostela in northwest Spain, has a new headquarters in what was once a sanatorium. Casa Ria is intended for use by the non-profit to contribute to sustainability initiatives and quality of life in Galicia. It’s also a base for David Chipperfield Architects Santiago.
fundacionria.org 

Best emergency facility 
Jircany Fire Station by SOA Architekti 
Czechia 

Czech studio soa Architekti’s redesign of Jircany Fire Station has turned what could have been an isolated storage space for vehicles and hoses into a place where essential workers and the community overlap. Located in Psáry, a town that’s a 30-minute drive south of Prague, it’s a luminous polycarbonate-façade structure. 
s-o-a.cz 

Emerging designer 
Minjae Kim  
South Korea & USA 

Minjae Kim works across interiors, furniture, sculpture and art, in Seoul and New York. His work straddles the line between the practical and the artistic. 

“I favour objects that reveal the layers of their creation, permitting one to discern their formation, in contrast to those flawless products that merely inspire admiration,” he says. “I contend that the presence of imperfections, rather than a pristine finish, cultivates an aura of ‘breathing space’.” 
minjae.kim 

Best imprint 
Park Books 
Switzerland 

Zürich-based architecture and design imprint Park Books makes publications that are both sources of knowledge and beautiful objects. “Inspired by Swiss craftsmanship, we pay close attention to the materiality of every book while engaging with the topical issues of design,” says Julie Cirelli, its Stockholm-based director. 

Established in 2012 as an affiliate of Scheidegger & Spiess, Park encourages an exchange of ideas between authors, architects and readers that continues long after the publication date. 
park-books.com 

Graduate to watch
Changhwi Kim 
South Korea 

Driven by empathy and an insatiable curiosity, Changhwi Kim creates products that go well beyond what is expected. Fresh from design school, Kim is a nuanced observer of people and everyday objects, and he aspires to build a better, more playful world. We meet him to discuss his graduation project, “Ed!t”, in his collaborative workspace, Creative Group 297. 

Best for seniors
Little Tokyo Towers by OWIU 
USA

Home to 301 one-bedroom apartments for seniors, Little Tokyo Towers in Los Angeles shows how assisted living spaces can be uplifting. Design studio OWIU renovated communal areas, making simple adjustments, such as custom seating, homely lighting and space-defining shoji screens. 
owiu-design.com 

Best modernisation  
Astep Model 262 
Denmark

According to Alessandro Sarfatti, the third-generation owner of Danish-Italian design company Astep, his grandfather Gino was a “purist”. Sarfatti is modernising his family firm’s mid-century designs, including Gino’s Model 262, a striking light fixture in which the light bulb sits cradled in the curve of a sleek aluminium disc. Originally created in 1971, the design has been updated to meet 21st-century needs and conform to Astep’s exacting standards as a certified B Corp. It’s chic, functional and energy-efficient – and shows that the past can be both celebrated and modernised. 
astep.design 

Best new hotel 
Stadthotel Kleiner Löwe 
Austria 

A celebrated Swiss practice, Bregenzerwälder craftsmen and a couple seeking a lifelong investment came together to convert a 17th-century brewery into the Stadthotel Kleiner Löwe, an elegant eight-room guesthouse. Lisa Rümmele and her partner, Johannes Glatz, convinced Herzog & de Meuron to take on the renovation. The building’s centuries-old façade has been preserved but a modern annexe has been added on top. It’s a fine hospitality addition to the Austrian stretch of Lake Constance. 
kleinerloewe.at; herzogdemeuron.com 

Best public space 
Pier 22 by Mostlikely Architecture  
Austria

Vienna’s Danube Island is an artificial stretch of land created in the 1970s and 1980s as a flood protection measure. “When they built it, they didn’t have any idea of what else it should be,” says Mark Neuner, the founder of Viennese architecture firm Mostlikely. Last year the practice completed the first phase of its Pier 22 project on the island. Facing Vienna’s tallest building, the DC Tower 1, it’s the recreation space that the city has long needed, despite its strong tradition of bathing beaches and swimming pools. 
mostlikely.at 

Best for contemplation 
Raj Sabhagruh 
India 

The Raj Sabhagruh in Gujarat is a meditation complex designed by Serie Architects, a firm based in Mumbai, Singapore and London. Built for Jains, the vast construction is dedicated to providing the optimal conditions for samayika, one of Jainism’s key tenets, meaning the pursuit of spirituality through 48 minutes of concentrated silence. 
serie.co.uk 

Civic architect of the year 
Jeanne Gang 
USA

Jeanne Gang established Studio Gang in 1997 and has since become renowned for spaces that connect people, their communities and the environment. “Our core principles come through in how we approach every project, starting with what’s already there,” says Gang, who recently expanded the California College of the Arts. “That doesn’t just mean context in a traditional sense. It also means people, geology, history or existing buildings. With the Verde tower in San Francisco, for instance, we considered how the building contributes to the public realm. If a place is designed well, people will want to be there.” 
studiogang.com 

Best cutlery 
Concorde by Christofle 
France 

The Place de la Concorde in Paris is symbolic of French fraternity. So it’s a fitting source of inspiration for Christofle’s well-established Concorde silverware collections, designed for use at parties. Housed in a white-oak-and-steel case, the cutlery draws deeply from the brand’s heritage. A milleraies pattern lining the utensils’ handles provides a contrast between gloss and matte finishes. These knives, forks and spoons are a pleasure to hold.
christofle.com 

Best for coffee 
Linea Micra by La Marzocco 
Italy

This compact version of La Marzocco’s barista-approved coffee machines allows you to make café-level flat whites at home. “The Linea Micra is designed to offer the same performance as our commercial machines, scaled for home use,” says Stefano Della Pietra, La Marzocco’s head designer. The coffee machine’s clean-lined aesthetic reflects the manufacturer’s Florentine roots, particularly the architectural legacy of the Renaissance – making the Linea Micra an elegant and eye-catching addition to your kitchen countertop. 
lamarzocco.com 

Best renovation 
Lunetta by Acme 
Australia 

With its panoramic views of Canberra, the 12-sided restaurant building at 60 Red Hill Drive has been a city landmark since its completion in 1963. Originally designed by Czech architect Miles Jakl, it was reimagined in 1981 by Italian-born Enrico Taglietti, who added futuristic convex bay windows. Now, after three years of closure, the building has reopened as the home of two dining spots: Lunetta and Lunetta Trattoria. 
lunetta.au; acme-co.com.au