On 19 May 2026, the final jury of the National Design Award of Latvia 2026 (NDAL) named the competition's finalists. Of the 55 nominees, 21 works have reached the final: six works in the product and environmental design categories, five works in the communication design category, and two works in the service and digital solutions categories. On 20 May, all finalists will present their works in person to the final jury, which will decide on the winner of each category, as well as on the recipients of the Grand Prix and the Emerging Designer Award. The competition laureates will be revealed at a ceremonial awards event on 21 May 2026 at the Gaso gas tower at Vagonu iela 20, Riga.

In the winter and autumn application sessions of the National Design Award of Latvia 2026, a total of 110 applications were received, of which the selection jury advanced 55 nominees to the next round of the competition. These were assessed in lively discussions by the members of the final jury, who met in person in Riga on 18 and 19 May. The final jury comprises six experienced design professionals, and alongside the Latvian representatives, the works are also assessed by international experts:

The assessment of the finalists will continue with the presentation of works to the jury on 20 May 2026, from 14:00 to 18:00, at the LIAA Representative Office of Creative Industries, Elizabetes iela 45–47 (4th floor), Riga. The final jury will then continue its deliberations to decide on the winner of each category, the recipient of the Grand Prix — which will be selected from among the category winners — and the recipient of the Emerging Designer Award. The competition will conclude with a ceremonial awards event on 21 May 2026, at 19:00, at the Gaso gas tower at Vagonu iela 20, Riga. Alongside the competition's awards, two special prizes will also be presented at the event — from the Patent Office and JCDecaux.

The NDAL 2026 finalists

The final jury was surprised by the diversity of the entries submitted — their broad scope and variety — also noting the wide range and high quality of the student applications. In assessing the competition nominees, the jury highlighted works that paid attention to detail and expressed care for materials, the environment and people. Works grounded in considered processes of collaboration also stood out, including co-creation sessions that shaped the development of the projects.

The jury notes that the choice of finalists was not easy. «We discussed the strengths and weaknesses of the applications in each category, and the discussions were particularly lively in the communication, environmental and product design categories. We would like to emphasise that all the designers and teams included in the list of 55 nominees can take pride in this achievement!» comments the chair of the final jury, Pamela Mead.

For the future, the jury advises the authors of works to devote more attention in their applications to processes, context and demonstrable results, and encourages them to consider the potential of technical innovation for collective use.

Product design

  1. Monk Echo guitar pedal. Authors — Overpriced, Matīss Tazāns, Toms Lazdovskis. Contractor — Mentha Works.
  2. Interior Object Collection «The Parade of Winter Guardians». Authors — «Ausme» and Katrīna Paula Vītola. Contractor— «Ausme».
  3. Altar at Home candle. Author and contractor— Mārcis Ziemiņš.
  4. PineSkins pouf. Author — Sarmīte Poļakova. Contractor — European Union exhibition «Design Beyond Things» Expo 2025 Osaka.

Emerging Designer Award

  1. Healthy Teeth — interactive educational toy for children before a dentist visit. Author — Anete Meiere. Contractor — Riga Design and Art Secondary School.
  2. Lifebuoy stand. Author — Una Beļeviča. Contractor — Riga Secondary School of Design and Art.

Service design

  1. Biometric wallet Handwave. Authors — «Handwave», «Cube». Contractor— «Handwave».


Emerging Designer Award

  1. Regenerative Housing — housing accessibility project. Authors — Amanda Strīģele, Kristen Kennedy, Sobia Farooqui, Abhijit Balaji, Margarita Cajas. Contractor — SDSI, Tallinn municipality.

Communication design

  1. The Drying Flag campaign. Author — McCann Riga. Contractor — State Blood Donor Centre.
  2. Treasures of Latvia book. Author — KID Design. Contractor — The Red Jackets.
  3. Brand identity for the Latvian Academy of Culture. Author — «Overpriced». Contractor — Latvian Academy of Culture.
  4. The Living Glove book. Authors — Overpriced, Dans Jirgensons. Contractor — Cimdu ceļš association.


Emerging Designer Award

  1. Right on Time — a pastime for in-patients of the Children’s Clinical University Hospital. Authors — Ieva Skuja–Zelča, Marta Elizabete Smilga. Contractor — Art Academy of Latvia.

Environmental design

  1. Design of the Baltic Pavilion We Are One at Expo 2025. Authors: pavilion design — «Variant Studio»; graphic design and concept — «Ozols IR»; production — «Inspired»; architecture — «7 A.M.»; manufacturing — «YesWeCan»; IT solutions — «Datu Tehnoloģiju grupa». Contractor — Investment and Development Agency of Latvia, Office of the Government of the Republic of Lithuania.
  2. Ārpus rāpus exhibition for families with children. Authors: curator — Kristīne Liniņa; exhibition design — Tatjana Raičiņeca; graphic design — Zigmunds Lapsa. Contractor — Pauls Stradiņš Museum of the History of Medicine.
  3. Procrastination and Creation — permanent exhibition at the Latvian National Museum of Literature and Music. Authors: concept — Una Rozenbauma; exhibition design — Anna Heinrihsone; graphic identity — Associates, Partners et Sons; interior design — Outofbox; author of the poetic guide essays — Nora Ikstena; author of the musical message — Sigvards Kļava; creative and research team — Jēkabs Nīmanis, Marians Rižijs, Ingus Barovskis, Inese Žune; project manager — Iveta Ruskule. Contractor — Latvian National Museum of Literature and Music.
  4. Interior design of café CCAF. Cacao Apothecary Firm. Author — design studio Ēter, Dagnija Smilga. Contractor — CCAF. Cacao Apothecary Firm.
  5. Molberts ice cream production facility design. Author — Gateris Works. Contractor — Molberts Saldējums.


Emerging Designer Award

  1. Sea Yourself at Home installation. Author — Pēteris Zilbers. Contractor — Design Academy Eindhoven.

Digital solutions

  1. LMT — 20,000 mobile phone light show. Author — Wrong Digital. Contractor — LMT.
  2. Tutas lietas app. Authors — «Ausma Media», «Cube». Contractor — «Ausma Media».

NDAL 2026 final events

Announcement of the NDAL 2026 finalists and presentations from the final jury members

May 19, from 14:00 to 17:00
At the Latvian National Museum of Literature and Music, Mārstaļu iela 6, Riga

Registration: https://ej.uz/finalistu_pazinosana.

NDAL 2026 finalist presentations

May 20, from 14:00 to 18:00
at LIAA Representative office of Creative industries, Elizabetes iela 45–47 (4th floor), Riga

Design and Intellectual Property: A Discussion with Designers and Industry Professionals on the Protection of Creative Works

May 21, from 11:00 to 14:00
At the Patent Office, Citadeles iela 6A, Riga

Read more about the event here: https://www.lrpv.gov.lv/lv/notikums/dizains-un-intelektualais-ipasums-saruna-ar-dizaineriem-un-nozares-profesionaliem-par-radoso-darbu-aizsardzibu

NDAL 2026 awards ceremony

May 21, 19:00
At the Gaso gas tower at Vagonu iela 20 in Riga.

To attend the ceremony, registration is obligatory: https://ej.uz/LDGB_2026_ceremonija

About the Competition

The National Design Award of Latvia is a national-level award in design, the aim of which is to identify, evaluate and promote the most outstanding achievements of Latvian designers, fostering the development of Latvia's design industry. The competition was established in 2017 with the support of the Ministry of Culture, and during the period from 2026 to 2028 it is organised by the Latvian Design Centre. 

Latvian Design Centre is a member of the Bureau of European Design Associations (BEDA) and an official partner of the European Commission's New European Bauhaus Initiative. Latvian Design Centre is involved in design policy making, research and education, and initiates cooperation and strategic partnerships with other design organizations, designers, companies and design users. With the support of the Ministry of Culture, Latvian Design Centre maintains the creative industry communication platform FOLD.