Retail. Hospitality. Work. Institutions. Living. Shows. After a year of celebrating Interiors of the Month, we’ve worked with a Grand Jury to distinguish the Interiors of the Year across sectors. Discover them all, with insights from the jury, now.

First off: a big congratulations is in order to all of the designers and studios who have achieved accolades in our Spatial awards over the past year. We, the Frame team – along with our rotating juries of international design professionals and global audience – have had the opportunity to learn, connect and be inspired thanks to your work and participation. The group below comprises interiors that are the best and brightest in their sectors: they're spaces that are set to leave a resonating impact in our industry, pushing spatial design as we know it forward into a more sustainable, inclusive and beautiful future.

The winners have been recognized as a result of the joint efforts of our monthly juries and our Grand Jury, which met in collective deliberations to select the most impressive spaces from the Frame Awards 2021 shortlist. Below, we share the top interiors with jury commentary that provides a glimpse into those holistic deliberations. You can learn more about the analysis of each winner by exploring their individual project pages. 

Ura - Landscape by JA! Studio, our Window Display of the Year.

RETAIL

Single-Brand Store of the Year: Camper Store Málaga, Oficina Penadés, Málaga, Spain, 8.8 

‘The Camper store is a really nice example of how you create a retail space that is in touch with the human soul of us,’ says Florian Seidl, design manager at Lavazza. ‘It resonates with our needs and expresses the identity of the brand.’ 

Multi-Brand Store of the Year: tegut… teo, Design for Human Nature, Fulda, Germany, 7.95 

‘Tegut… teo is a winning project because it puts people first and humanizes technology to such a highly functional state,’ Rosie Morley, principal at Fender Katsalidis, notes. ‘It brings utility to the fore, with solutions for future problems.’

Pop-Up Store of the Year: Pop-up experience and store scenography for Bottega Veneta, Random Studio, Seoul, South Korea, 8.35

Director and senior architect at Snøhetta Anne-Rachel Schiffman comments that: ‘The Bottega Veneta project really plays with the notion of the pop-up – the energy, atmosphere and exuberance – and exceeds in integrating the direction that the brand wants to go.’

Window Display of the Year: Ura – Landscape, JA! Studio, Donastia-San Sebastian, Spain, 8.95

‘We’re overwhelmed visually, so constantly bombarded with images, that nothing impresses us anymore. . .the design of the window works because the use of colour is so powerful,’ remarks Sergio Mannino, founder of Sergio Mannino Studio. ‘I can’t imagine not stopping by this window.’

Designed by Atelier Tao+C, the Capsule Hostel and Bookstore Qinglongwu is the Hotel of the Year.

HOSPITALITY

Bar of the Year: Mother Pearl, A Work of Substance, Hong Kong, China, 8.06

‘Mother Pearl brings the inside outside,’ explains Interstore creative director Nathan Watts. ‘It’s like a piece of jewellery on the street – it transforms the landscape and changes the way you think about kiosk retail.’

Restaurant of the Year: Voisin Organique, Various Associates, Shenzhen, China, 8.4

Mustafa Afsaroglu, cofounder and interior designer at Taner’s Sons Design Studio, says: ‘The restaurant takes you to an almost spiritual level that’s unexpected – a new experience. I love the flirtatious play with daylight and artificial mood lighting.’

Hotel of the Year: Capsule Hostel and Bookstore Qinglongwu, Atelier Tao+C, Hangzhou, China, 9.29 

‘The Capsule Hostel’s power lies in the fact that it’s quite transformative for the user – that’s really important,’ thinks Nasim Köerting, head of design at The Office Group. ‘It’s also got the “wow” factor and is innovative in that sense – and its sustainability credentials are quite obvious.’ 

Entertainment Venue of the Year: Felix Meritis, i29, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 8.33

‘Felix Meritis is a really exciting work because not only does it reuse existing spaces, it reimagines them in a way that feels contemporary and of the moment – but you can also imagine using the space in this way in many years to come,’ shares Conran and Partners partner Tina Norden. ‘That adds to it being not only an exciting, but sustainable, project.’ 

Health Club of the Year: Vikasa Yoga, Enter Projects Asia, Bangkok, Thailand, 8.48

‘Vikasa Yoga offers a beautiful balance of functional and emotional design,’ George Foussias, director of interior design at Lemay, explains. ‘The designers took a modern design-thinking toolkit and merged it with local fabrication methods that are relevant, sustainable and timeless. Moreover, the studio allows one to celebrate themselves.’ 

Our Large Office of the Year, The Campus, by Kokuyo. 

WORK

Co-Working Space of the Year: Het Vakwerkhuis, Vakwerk Architecten, Delft. The Netherlands, 8.46

Caro Lundin, cofounder and creative director of ARC Club, says: ‘This not only serves as an interesting piece of architecture and an interesting co-working space but also as a meeting hub for the neighbourhood and city. That really spoke to me.’

Small Office of the Year: R/URBAN Design Office, R/URBAN Design Office, Tokyo, Japan, 8.61

‘R/URBAN Design Office is unique, welcoming and shows a smart use of the space it has. I like the versatility of the design and how the furniture can be rearranged to create different working styles,’ comments TP Bennett director Michelle Wilkie, who also acknowledged the ‘humble use of materials’ and ‘connection to nature’.

Large Office of the Year: The Campus, Kokuyo, Tokyo, Japan, 8.94 

‘I really like the attitude of taking an existing office space and opening it up to the public, allowing the office to be more social and open, while at the same time, being really smart in terms of how each of the areas works,’ shares Luis Pedra Silva, founder and lead architect at Pedra Silva Arquitectos, remarking how ‘biophilia and the palettes’ make for an inviting workspace. 

Maggie's Leeds by Heatherwick Studio takes home the prize for Healthcare Centre.

INSTITUTIONS

Learning Space of the Year: Architecture Library Chulalongkorn University, Department of Architecture, Bangkok, Thailand, 8.18

‘The architecture library is a real effort to reinvent what a library is in the context of learning historically, currently and for the future,’ Patrick Keane, director and cofounder at Enter Projects, thinks.

Healthcare Centre of the Year: Maggie's Leeds, Heatherwick Studio, Leeds, The United Kingdom, 9.69

‘This is the winning project on many levels,’ argues Domus Academy director of education Mark Anderson. ‘It’s a very sensitive and innovative proposal that represents a groundbreaking approach to the typology where the human experience is prioritized.’

Governmental Interior of the Year: Bund Post Office Ningbo, Yatofu Creatives, Ningbo, China, 8.69

‘The post office is the most spirited solution that represents an ability to restore faith in public architecture,’ notes principal and director of design interiors at HOK Bill Bouchey. ‘This particular project is intimate and colourful – it is unexpected, the very thing we seek in society-based institutional architecture.' 

Cultural Space of the Year: Forum Groningen, NL Architects with DeMunnikDeJongSteinhauser architectencollectief, Groningen, The Netherlands, 9.15

‘Cultural spaces are usually quite defined. But his forum proposes a new type of culture,’ reflects Daisuke Nagatomo, assistant professor at the National Taiwan Normal University. ‘It motivates and educates us to think about new culture in terms of creating interior spaces.’ 

Small Apartment of the Year goes to Studio Z's Space 5.7.

LIVING

Small Apartment of the Year: Space 5.7, Studio Z, Hong Kong, China, 8.62

‘Space 5.7 is a representation of what happens when you take the basic principles of effective, functional design and apply them to a micro-apartment,’ Leni Popovici, founding director and partner at KAP Studios, remarks. ‘It’s a really fantastic example to us of how great design goes way beyond what’s trendy and starts to a have a measurable impact on quality of life.’

Large Apartment of the Year: The Gymnasium, Robbert de Goede, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 8.47

‘Everything harmoniously works in this project,’ says Serhii Makhno, founder of Sergey Makhno Architects and Makhno Art Foundation, who commends the effective renovation. ‘It’s livable – not too glamorous or difficult – functional and sustainable.’ 

House of the Year: Qishe Courtyard, Archstudio, Beijing, China, 8.55 

‘The Qishe Courtyard offers a really nice contrast between the historical urban street and the more contemporary interior,’ professor at Humber College Zaiba Mian points out. ‘I appreciate the sanctuary that’s developed in the interior space, allowing one to contemplate and create a sense of calm within the busy urban environment.’

Co-Living Complex of the Year: Arkadia, Breathe Architecture, DKO, Oculus, Sydney, Australia, 8.03 

‘Arkadia is the project with the most ambitious design,’ argues Elena Apiou, head of design at Aparthotels Adagio. ‘It’s not only about how the façade or interior is arranged, it’s also a solution to a sociological and demographic issue.’ 

Show Flat of the Year: First House, Hanghar, Murcia, Spain, 7.31

‘I love this project – it’s simple, relatable and adaptable,’ says Newmark regional workplace manager Tiffany Yao. ‘With it being in the Show Flat category, I can see this project as designed for one particular client, but I can also see it designed for everyone – it just has everything anyone would want in their life.’

Kitchen of the Year: Crcs Kitchen, Plutarco, Madrid, Spain, 7.31

‘The Crcs Kitchen is the winner because they’ve created a space that’s really quite innovative – they’ve taken a lot of constraints within the site and created a sense of theatre out of the design,’ Amrita Mahindroo, director of DROO - Da Costa Mahindroo Architects, comments. It makes use of every sq-m.’

Bathroom of the Year: Kuwamizu Bath House, wAtelier, Kumamoto, Japan, 7.66

‘It’s a clever and surprising design approach through the exhibition of art objects and  the bathroom’s architectural context,’ says Barde + vanVoltt cofounder Valérie Boerma, who highlighted the use of local, sustainable materials. 

Rooi Design and Research's Pavilion is the Trade-Fair Stand of the Year.

SHOWS 

Trade-Fair Stand of the Year: Pavilion S, Rooi Design and Research, Shanghai, China, 8.55 

‘You really see the intelligence in the concept – the research of the heritage and architectural joining methods,’ Rive Roshan partner Golnar Roshan notes. ‘Nowadays, we really connect with that honesty and purity – it makes the stand very believable and approachable.’

Exhibition of the Year: UABB Longgang Exhibition Hall, Atelier XI, Shenzhen, China, 8.38

‘UABB Longgang Exhibition Hall displays a wonderful exploration of light and geometry as an architectural conduit,’ opines Julian Lwin, principal and spatial design director at Lwindesign and Street Farms USA. ‘It almost hypnotically transports a visitor through this vast space.’

Set Design of the Year: The Drowned World Anchor, Ultra Studio, Tokyo, Japan, 8.36 

‘All the design elements served the purpose of creating an immersive and sensual experience while very deliberately keeping an equilibrium with appropriateness,’ poses Dr Avsar Gurpinar, lecturer in design at Loughborough University School of Design and Creative Arts and cofounder of Ambiguous Standards Institute.

Watch the virtual Frame Awards 2021 ceremony below: