INSIDE World Festival of Interiors has announced the best interior designs of 2016 across the categories of Civic, Culture and Transport, Display, Health & Education, Residential, Creative Re-Use and Hotels. The annual awards encompass the globe’s best interior designs from the past 12 months, and this year’s winners include a City Palace in Jaipur, a hospital in Mallorca and a display stand for the 2016 edition of Salone del Mobile in Milan.

Baradari City Palace by Studio Lotus won the Creative Re-Use category. Studio Lotus were invited by the royal family of Jaipur to redevelop the 14,000 sqft area of the former palace café in Rajasthan as a fine dining destination. The new intervention reinterprets traditional crafts of Jaipur – bespoke casting and foundry work – in a contemporary manner. The judges felt that this project represents an adaptive balance between archaeology and the contemporary – symbolising a new idea within the historic, palatial India. 

Indigo Slam by Smart Design Studio won the Residential category. This private home in Chippendale, Sydney, is part of the neighbourhood’s reinvention as an artistic and cultural hub. The project’s façade of sculpted concrete, serene living spaces and spacious halls, creates a dynamic interplay of space and light. The judges commended the project for “working with classic architectural elements such as light, texture and space sequences with an impressive care for detail”.

Mallorca-based practice OHLAB/ Oliver Hernaiz Architecture Lab was awarded two prizes on the second day of judging, after yesterday claiming the House of Year award at INSIDE’s co-located festival, WAF. OHLAB/Oliver Hernaiz Architecture Lab’s Puro Hotel won the hotly contested Hotels category. Situated in the historic quarter of Palma de Mallorca, the hotel has an irregular configuration, adapting to the different existing buildings of the neighbourhood to create unique a space where each room is different.  The judges said that “the architect showed an unique approach of developing and designing a ‘kit of parts’ to create a concept but very detailed solution. “

The practice’s second award was for Emardental Clinic in Mallorca which won the Health and Education category. The hospital offers a warm welcome, with oak finishes and soft tones, to guide patients around the space. The project has been designed with sensitivity to lighting and the highest attention to detail. The judges felt that there was a beautiful play between privacy and transparency, and commented that “the textures and materials used give the space a sense of security and trust.”

The Cut, stand design for Kvadrat, by Neri & Hu Desing & Research Office, won this year’s Display category. Designed for Salone del Mobile, the designers reinterpreted the classic furniture fair stand and transformed the space into an emotionally charged zone to intuitively affect each visitor on a primal level. The project was felt to stand out for it’s combination of displayed Kvadrat fabrics with a bold spatial strategy and distinct visitor experience.  Judges said “the fabric was used with roof lights in an unexpected and delightful way.”

York Theatre Royal by De Matos Ryan was crowned the winner of the Civic, Culture and Transport category. This project was deemed to unlock the potential of the site, opening the theatre’s doors to a wider community. Housing a welcoming street-facing café that is clearly visible from the outside to draw people in, the building’s Victorian colonnade has been glazed to give an animated face to the street, akin to a storefront. The judges commented that this project “stood out for the amount of research the practice had done into the history of the building – which creatively informed the designer’s proposals”. The introduction of raised seating to the stand and extension of aspects of the 1968 Patrick Gweynne scheme into the Victorian foyers were two elements that were particularly appreciated.

The six category winners were announced at the end of day two at INSIDE – World Festival of Interiors. Combined with yesterday’s successful practices, a total of nine category winners will now go head-to-head on the final day of the event tomorrow, all battling for the ultimate accolade of World Interior of the Year 2016.

As well as the INSIDE Awards programme, visitors to the festival are able to experience an in-depth talks programme exploring this year’s theme of ‘Fluid Interiors’ examining how crossover design is transforming how we live, work and play.  The speaking programme features international interior design leaders including Joyce Wang, Ross Lovegrove and Paul Monaghan together with by prominent local German luminaries including Almut Grüntuch-Ernst, Principal, Grüntuch-Ernst Architekten; Sigurd Larsen, Principal, Sigurd Larsen – Design and Architecture; Jan Liebe, Principal of Berlin-based Nord Studio; and Jürgen Mayer H., Principal of J. Mayer H. Architecture Design Research.

About INSIDE – World Festival of Interiors

Held in Berlin from 16-18 November alongside World Architecture Festival, INSIDE is where the global design community meets to be inspired by the latest and greatest in global interior design and architecture. Over three days INSIDE shines a spotlight on the people, projects and developments that are changing the face of global interiors. At INSIDE’s heart is a global awards programme, which will be judged by more than 20 distinguished designers and editors from around the world. Finalists that are shortlisted across nine categories will present their project in person to international judging panels. In a hard fought-over battle, one practice will win the ultimate accolade of World Interior of the Year, which will be presented at a Gala Dinner awards ceremony on the evening of Friday 18 November.