A Letter from our Co-Chair

November 2026

Welcome! Collab and the Philadelphia Museum of Art are delighted to celebrate 40 years of the Design Excellence Award, and to honor the people, partnerships and achievements that have shaped contemporary design along the way.

When Collab established the Award in 1986, it created a platform to bring international design leaders to Philadelphia. In the decades since, we have welcomed George Nakashima, Ingo Maurer, Zaha Hadid, Dieter Rams, Patricia Urquiola, Marcel Wanders, Gaetano Pesce, Stephen Burks, Naoto Fukasawa, and, most recently, Sebastian Errazuriz, to name only a few. Philadelphia students, designers and collectors met their heroes in person, and the accompanying exhibitions, competitions and programs elevated the City’s design sensibilities.

The Design Excellence Award has supported design education, nurtured talent at every stage of a career, and enriched the Museum’s collection of more than 3,000 functional objects -- from furniture and ceramics to glass, wallpaper, and lighting.

We are grateful to our generous sponsors and to the Collab community, whose steadfast support and boundless curiosity make this possible. Thank you for joining us on this design journey, and here's to the next 40 years of celebrating design excellence!

Warmly,

Jermaine Jenkins Co-Chair, Collab 2026