The Australian Interior Design Awards for 2026 have been announced, with Tasmania’s The Forest by Woods Bagot taking out the Premier Award for Australian Interior Design at last night’s Gala event at the Sofitel, Sydney.
Now in its 23rd year, the Australian Interior Design Awards program is a partnership between the Design Institute of Australia and Architecture Media’s InteriorsAu, celebrating interior design excellence both nationally and internationally.
This year 228 projects made the Australian Interior Design Awards shortlist. Entries were evaluated across sector-specific categories such as residential, retail, hospitality, public, workplace, and installation design, alongside awards for Sustainability Advancement and Emerging Interior Design Practice categories.
The Australian Interior Design Awards jury stated that “deliberations were no less lengthy for this year’s Australian Interior Design Awards as the high calibre of entries again surpassed expectations. While diversity, flexibility and adaptability were evident across all categories, the projects that stood out showcase great innovation and a sense of authenticity best expressed through exquisite materiality and detailing”.
This year’s Premier Award for Australian Interior Design recipient The Forest is the University of Tasmania’s flagship Hobart campus, providing an inner-city hub for learning, research, collaboration and community. The Forest is a highly connected campus that weaves together existing structures and new interventions with integrated landscape, through-block connections and publicly accessible thoroughfares.
The jury stated that “[The Forest] provides university students with an incredibly rich, layered environment that is uplifting and to which anyone would want to return.”
Coogee House III, with interior design by Genevieve Hromas and architecture by Tribe Studio Architects, took out both Residential Design and Best of State Residential New South Wales. The jury noted that “Coogee House III feels incredibly nostalgic with character-filled interior spaces that appear all the more magical for the quality of light the design team has managed to capture.”
Residential Decoration was taken out by YSG Studio for The Gentleman, New South Wales. The jury commented: “[The Gentleman] is spellbinding for its cohesive theme and tremendous level of sophisticated energy, all effortlessly and beautifully captured within a compact apartment space.”
Hospitality Design was awarded to two projects, with J.AR Office winning for the Australian bistro Marlowe, which was also awarded Best of State for Queensland. The Australian Interior Design Awards jury described Marlowe as “one of the awards’ most unique projects to date [with a] juxtaposition of contemporary furniture and nostalgic styling [making the] apartment-turned-restaurant a truly evocative and theatrical head-turner.”
The Hospitality Design category’s other joint awarded project for the category, Omada by Studio Gram “exudes a sense of nostalgia in its thoughtfully nuanced design, with subtle references to a Greek aesthetic.”
Small footprint projects made a big impact this year with the Retail Design Award being taken home by Pattern Studio for the clothing studio Deiji, which was also awarded the Best of State Commercial for New South Wales. The jury commented: “This tiny store demonstrates how rich and complex small spaces can be when designed well, highlighting the importance of spatial planning and superb detailing.”
Installation Design put two projects in the limelight for their “great beauty”. The jury awarded Lynda Draper: Glimmer by Youssofzay Hart calling it “compelling for its lovely colour palette and display system”. Additionally, Our Wondrous Planet by Museums Victoria “was a thoroughly immersive and exuberant installation that transported visitors to another world” and was also awarded in this category.
The Metro Tunnel Project – Town Hall Station by Hassell, Weston Williamson and Partners, and RSHP was jointly awarded for Public Design alongside Premier Award-winning project The Forest. The jury commented that the Town Hall Station is “an ambitious undertaking that celebrates a modern industrial aesthetic with expressive gestures that look like they will stand the test of time”.
The Workplace Design award recipient was Arup Workplace Brisbane by Hassell in partnership with Arup with the jury stating that the project “provides comfort and versatility via a design underpinned by strong sustainability principles, showing a way forward for workplace design”. Arup Workplace Brisbane was also the “very worthy” recipient of the Sustainability Advancement award.
Byron Bay-based studio Occupy Studio was awarded Emerging Interior Design Practice with the Australian Interior Design Awards jury stating, “its impressive adaptive reuse project Rowie HQ signals great things ahead”.
This coincides with the studio’s well-deserved commendation for Workplace Design.
2026 AWARDS AND COMMENDATIONS
PREMIER AWARD FOR AUSTRALIAN INTERIOR DESIGN
Woods Bagot for The Forest, Tasmania
RESIDENTIAL DESIGN
Award
Interior Design: Genevieve Hromas with Architecture: Tribe Studio Architects for Coogee House III, New South Wales
Commendations
- Carr for Brunswick Yard, Victoria
- Akin Atelier for Life of Riley, New South Wales
- Pop Architecture for Onward House, Victoria
- YSG Studio for The Gentleman, New South Wales
RESIDENTIAL DECORATION
Award
YSG Studio for The Gentleman, New South Wales
Commendations
- Alyssa Owens Design for Brooklyn Rose, United States of America
- Paul Conrad Architects for Mountview Residence, Victoria
- Studio Tali Roth for Surgeons Haven, Victoria
HOSPITALITY DESIGN
Award
- Studio Gram for Omada, South Australia
- J.AR Office for Marlowe, Queensland
Commendations
- J.AR Office for Golden Avenue, Queensland
- AP Design House for Homer Rogue Taverna, New South Wales
- Studio Y for Notting Hill Hotel – The Front Bar and Pool Room, Victoria
- Melissa Collison Design for Salon des Refusés, Hong Kong SAR China
RETAIL DESIGN
Award
Pattern Studio for Deiji, New South Wales
Commendations
- IF Architecture for Baker Bleu Cremorne, Victoria
- Ritz and Ghougassian for Cuccini Gelato Victoria Park, Western Australia
- J.AR Office for Togninis, Queensland
INSTALLATION DESIGN
Award
- Youssofzay Hart for Lynda Draper: Glimmer, New South Wales
- Museums Victoria for Our Wondrous Planet, Victoria
Commendations
- Studio Peter King in collaboration with the National Gallery of Victoria for Westwood | Kawakubo, Victoria
PUBLIC DESIGN
Award
- Hassell, Weston Williamson and Partners, and RSHP for Metro Tunnel Project – Town Hall Station, Victoria
- Woods Bagot for The Forest, Tasmania
Commendations
- Kosloff Architecture for 24/7 Latelab, Victoria
- Kart Projects for Banyan Fields Primary School, Victoria
- Hassell, Weston Williamson and Partners, and RSHP for Metro Tunnel Project – Anzac Station, Victoria
WORKPLACE DESIGN
Award
Hassell in partnership with Arup for Arup Workplace Brisbane, Queensland
Commendations
- YSG Studio for Alémais, New South Wales
- BVN for GPT HQ, New South Wales
- Design Office for Milieu, Victoria
- Occupy Studio for Rowie HQ, New South Wales
- Kennedy Nolan for William Street Chambers, Victoria
EMERGING INTERIOR DESIGN PRACTICE
Award
Occupy Studio, New South Wales
BEST OF STATE
Commercial
- South Australia: JPE Design Studio with Warren and Mahoney and Karl Winda Telfer for Adelaide Aquatic Centre Development
- Western Australia: Ritz and Ghougassian for Cuccini Gelato Victoria Park
- New South Wales: Pattern Studio for Deiji
- Queensland: J.AR Office for Marlowe
- Australian Capital Territory: Flack Studio for Scanlan Theodore Canberra
- Tasmania: Woods Bagot for The Forest
- Victoria: Kennedy Nolan for William Street Chambers
Residential
- New South Wales: Interior Design: Genevieve Hromas with Architecture: Tribe Studio Architects for Coogee House III
- South Australia: Simone Haag for Craigweil
- Queensland: ME for Dolphin Court House
- Victoria: Pop Architecture for Onward House
INTERNATIONAL DESIGN
2049 with Nathan Ngo for ARC, Abu Dhabi
SUSTAINABILITY ADVANCEMENT
Award
Hassell in partnership with Arup for Arup Workplace Brisbane, Queensland
Commendations
- Design Inc for Maribyrnong Civic Precinct and Community Hub Redevelopment, Victoria
- Paper for P25 Corporate HQ, Western Australia
- Woods Bagot for The Forest, Tasmania
- Billard Leece Partnership and Workshop Architecture for Bunjil Wellbeing Place, Victoria
