Level 3
The Rigg Design Prize is Australia’s most prestigious accolade for contemporary design. Since its inception in 1994, this triennial prize exhibition has featured over one hundred designers across a range of disciplines, celebrating their creative achievements and providing a valuable platform for visibility, recognition and impact. For its landmark tenth edition in 2025, the $40,000 prize will be awarded to an early-career Australian design practice, drawing attention to the new generation of talent. Bringing together thirty-five emerging designers under the age of 35, the exhibition spans ceramics, glass, furniture, woodwork, metalwork, textiles, lighting and contemporary jewellery, presenting ambitious works that reflect bold approaches to materiality, form and function.
Early-career practitioners play a crucial role in shaping Australia’s design ecosystem and culture. They bring bold ideas and fresh perspectives that challenge conventions and expand the possibilities of design and making. The Rigg Design Prize 2025 – Next in Design: 35 Under 35 – recognises the energy, ingenuity and vision of emerging designers who are making important contributions to their fields.
Now in its tenth edition, the Rigg Design Prize is Australia’s highest national accolade for contemporary design bestowed by an Australian public gallery and seeks to profile a different field of design practice every three years. Past recipients include Neville Assad (1994); Robert Baines (1997); Louise Weaver (2003); Sally Marsland (2006); Simone LeAmon (2009); Marian Hosking (2012); Adam Goodrum (2015); Hecker Guthrie (2018); Leo Burnett Australia (2022).
The Rigg Design Prize is generously supported by the Cecily & Colin Rigg Bequest, managed by Equity Trustees.
As NGV prepares for the tenth edition of this prestigious prize, we recognise the legacy of its benefactor Colin G. Rigg (1895–1982).