Dubai Design Week is proud to announce that the 'UAE Designer Exhibition', presented at Downtown Design, has been awarded the ‘Best Incubator’ accolade at the 2025 Monocle Design Awards.
The Monocle Design Awards, presented by premium global brand Monocle, celebrate the most impactful and inspiring work shaping our world today, and reinforces Dubai’s position as a global centre for creativity and innovation, and a vital hub for nurturing emerging talent.
A part of Dubai Design Week, in strategic partnership with Dubai Design District (d3), a member of TECOM Group PJSC, and supported by Dubai Culture, the fifth edition of the UAE Designer Exhibition was curated by Emirati designer Omar Al Gurg and showcased a diverse collection of innovative furniture and products by over 30 emerging Emirati and UAE-based designers. Presented within Downtown Design, the region’s leading contemporary design fair and anchor event of Dubai Design Week, the exhibition continues to provide an essential platform for local talent to gain visibility, connect with the wider industry, and shape the creative dialogue.
The accolade marks the second consecutive year that a Dubai Design Week programme has been recognised by the Monocle Design Awards. In 2023, ‘Of Palm’, a pavilion designed by Emirati architect Abdalla Almulla and commissioned under Dubai Design Week’s Abwab special commissions programme, was celebrated for its sustainable design approach inspired by traditional Emirati materials and techniques.