This year’s shortlist for the Design Middle East Awards 2025 marks an important moment for our studio. Being recognised across ten categories is not only a celebration of collective achievement, it is also a testament to the individuals whose vision, leadership, and craft shape our work every day.

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Our practice spans continents, scales, and disciplines, yet it is bound by a consistent ambition: to shape environments that matter. Architecture becomes meaningful when it responds to context, elevates daily life, and leaves room for people to define their own relationship with the built world. Each nomination stands as evidence of that intention.

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Among this year’s shortlisted nominees, several individual categories highlight the depth of talent within our team.

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Colin Bone is shortlisted for CEO of the Year, recognition of a leader who has grown Kettle Collective into an internationally awarded studio through strategic vision, cultural awareness, and a decades-long commitment to sustainable, globally impactful design.

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Will Whiter, nominated for Architect of the Year, is celebrated for his ability to balance conceptual clarity with technical precision, leading major projects across the Middle East with a design philosophy grounded in thoughtful problem-solving and contextual sensitivity.

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Marta Grosoli’s nomination for Interior Designer of the Year reflects her refined, human-centred approach to interiors, designing spaces that merge emotion, purpose, and precision, and leading teams with empathy and rigorous detail orientation.

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Ena Mujagic, shortlisted for Woman Icon of the Year, is recognised for her impact as a design leader, mentor, and advocate, shaping one of the studio’s fastest-growing disciplines while championing inclusion and elevating women’s visibility in the industry.

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Alongside these individual recognitions, the shortlist also honours the collaborative engine behind our projects. Being named in categories such as Architecture Firm of the Year, Interior Design Firm of the Year, and Best Consultancy Firm underscores the integrated approach that defines our work. It is the result of teams who question, test, refine, and build together.

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Two nominated projects illustrate the breadth and complexity of our practice. Golf Links Residences and Apartments, shortlisted for Best Future Project, reimagines contemporary living with a quiet connection to landscape and light. Majid Al Futtaim Mosque, recognised in the Cultural Project of the Year category, reflects cultural identity through modern craftsmanship and spatial clarity. Each project, in its own way, demonstrates the balance between ambition and restraint that guides our design process.

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Awards are not the destination. They are a moment to pause and acknowledge the many hands, minds, and conversations that shape each line drawn and each decision made. They remind us that great work emerges from dedication, curiosity, and a shared belief in the value of thoughtful design.

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We look forward to the ceremony on 26 November and extend our appreciation to everyone whose work contributed to these nominations. Their commitment is the quiet structure beneath each recognition, and the reason these honours are possible at all.

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