Clerkenwell Design Week Design Competition American Cherry Award Object 

Presented by Design Milk | Supported by AHEC 

THE BRIEF 

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We want to offer you, as someone at the beginning of your design career, the opportunity to design an object that will become part of one of the most visible design events in the UK. 

Clerkenwell Design Week, in partnership with Design Milk and supported by the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC), invites emerging designers to respond to a material-led brief exploring the creative potential of American hardwood. 

Participants are invited to design a distinctive award object made from American cherry, which will be produced as part of the inaugural Clerkenwell Design Week Awards. 

This initiative builds on AHEC’s long-standing collaborations with emerging designers, where material exploration, craftsmanship and storytelling form the foundation of the creative process. 

Your proposal should explore the qualities and character of American cherry, resulting in an object that reflects both the identity of the material and your own creative response to it. 

More information about previous AHEC design collaborations can be found here. 

Competition Overview 

Media 10 has invited the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC) to support the Clerkenwell Design Week Design Competition, a national initiative presented in partnership with Design Milk. 

The competition invites UK design students and recent graduates to respond to a material-led brief exploring the creative and structural possibilities of American cherry – often described as a ‘character timber’, valued for its natural variations, warmth and ability to develop a rich patina over time. 

Participants will develop an original design proposal that demonstrates an understanding of timber as a sustainable, versatile and contemporary design material. 

Following the submission period, a selected designer or design team will be commissioned to develop their proposal into a series of finished award objects in collaboration with a professional maker. 

The selected designer will receive a £1,000 design fee for the development of the final award design. 

The finished objects will be fabricated in American cherry and presented during Clerkenwell Design Week, providing a high-profile platform for both the emerging designer and the material itself 

Creative Direction 

Material, Character & Connection 

This brief invites designers to explore how materials influence the way we design and interact with objects. 

In a time when many aspects of our lives are mediated through digital tools, the act of working with natural materials offers an opportunity to reconnect with craft, process and physical form. 

Participants are encouraged to consider the relationship between material, form and use, and how the natural qualities of wood can inform a design. 

American cherry is known for its warmth, subtle colour variation and a patina that evolves over time. Designers should allow these natural characteristics to guide the development of their proposal. 

The final object should feel contemporary, sculptural and considered — something that recipients will want to keep and display long after the ceremony itself. 

Design Challenge 

Participants are tasked with designing a hand-held award object made from sustainably sourced American cherry. 

The design should: 

• Celebrate the natural character of American cherry 
• Respond to the timber’s grain, colour and variation 
• Demonstrate thoughtful use of material, form and construction 
• Reflect the values of innovation, craftsmanship and contemporary design 
• Champion the principles of good, sustainable design 

The object should be suitable for presentation during an awards ceremony. 

The piece must also include a dedicated area for engraving or inscription, where the recipient name, award category and year can be displayed. This area should be considered as part of the design itself, rather than added as an afterthought. 

Design proposals should allow the character of the timber to inform the final outcome, encouraging a design process directly shaped by the properties of the material. 

Scale & Production Guidance 

While final dimensions will be confirmed during development, the object should be conceived as a compact hand-held award piece. 

As guidance: 

• Approximate height: 180–250 mm 
• Comfortable one-handed weight: approximately 0.5–1.2 kg 

The design should also consider efficient fabrication, as approximately 40 pieces will be produced for the awards ceremony. 

Designers may choose to develop: 

• A single award design used across multiple categories, or 
• A design that can subtly adapt to represent three different award categories. 

Why American Hardwoods? 

Wood is renewable, recyclable and a natural carbon store. It can be used both as a material and as a fuel, making it a low-impact choice compared to many high-energy materials. 

Strong for its weight, wood is tactile, versatile and visually rich, bringing warmth to interiors while contributing positively to human wellbeing. 

As the world faces increasing pressures from climate change and over-consumption of high-impact materials, there is a growing need to make better use of the sustainable resources nature already provides. 

The material choices made by designers, manufacturers and consumers have a direct effect on the health and sustainability of forests. 

American hardwood forests stretch from Maine in the north to the Mississippi in the south, covering a vast and diverse landscape. These forests are naturally regenerating and sustainably managed, ensuring long-term ecological balance 

American Cherry (Prunus serotina) 

American cherry is a premium cabinet hardwood known for its character and elegance. 

The narrow sapwood is a light pinkish colour, while the heartwood ranges from rich red to reddish brown, darkening naturally with exposure to light and age. 

Key characteristics include: 

• Fine, straight grain 
• Smooth, close texture 
• Warm colour and natural depth 
• Excellent finishing qualities 

American cherry is easy to machine, shape and finish, producing a smooth and refined surface when sanded and polished. 

Its warmth and natural character make it particularly well suited to objects designed to be held, touched and experienced up close. 

Learn more about American cherry here. 

Outcome 

The selected design will be developed into a series of finished award objects fabricated in American cherry. 

These pieces will be presented during Clerkenwell Design Week, where they will be awarded as part of the Clerkenwell Design Week Awards programme. 

The awards will be presented to an international audience of architects, designers, journalists and industry leaders. 

For the selected designer, the initiative offers the opportunity to: 

• Receive a £1,000 design fee 
• Work with industry partners and professional makers 
• See their work realised at full scale 
• Present their design on one of the most visible platforms in contemporary design 

How to Apply 

To take part in the Clerkenwell Design Week Design Competition, please submit your application at this link by Wednesday, 1st April 2026. 

Applications should include: 

• A short written description of your design concept 
• Sketches, renderings or drawings that communicate the proposal 
• A brief explanation of how the design responds to American cherry as a material 

Submissions will be reviewed by a panel including representatives from Clerkenwell Design Week, Design Milk, and the competition’s appointed maker. 

Shortlisted applicants may be invited to discuss their proposal further before a final design is selected. 

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Terms and Conditions Eligibility 

To participate in this competition, applicants must: 

• Be currently enrolled in a UK design school, or have graduated within the past two years 
• Be available to participate in the design development process if selected 
• Be able to commit time to the project between Saturday, 11th April – Tuesday, 19th May 2026.

Submissions may be made individually or as a small design team. 

Development Process & Commitment 

The selected designer will work closely with Clerkenwell Design Week, Design Milk and AHEC to develop their proposal into the final award design. 

This process will include: 

• Up to three design development iterations 
• Design review sessions with the project partners 
• Mentorship and feedback throughout the process 
• Collaboration with a professional maker responsible for fabrication 
• Participation in filming for comms materials related to the awards and providing self-captured content documenting the design and making process. 

The selected designer must be available during the development period between Saturday, 11th April – Friday, 15th May 2026.

Where possible, the designer will also be encouraged to visit the workshop and participate in aspects of the making process, gaining hands-on experience working with American hardwood. 

Additional Terms 

To ensure the smooth delivery of the project, the following conditions apply: 

• The selected designer must be able to commit sufficient time to the design development process 
• The design must be technically feasible to produce in American cherry 
• Approximately 40 award pieces will be fabricated from the final design 
• The selected designer will receive a £1,000 design fee for the development of the final award design 
• Clerkenwell Design Week, Design Milk and AHEC reserve the right to make reasonable refinements to the design during the development process 

Additional Conditions 

Intellectual Property: 

• The designer retains authorship credit for the design. 
• The final design may be produced by Clerkenwell Design Week for the awards programme. 

Production Rights: 

• Clerkenwell Design Week reserves the right to produce the award design for future editions of the awards. 

Promotion: 

• Submitted designs may be used in communications, exhibitions and promotional material relating to the competition. 

Feasibility:

• If a design proves technically impossible to fabricate, the organisers can adapt it with the designer. 

Withdrawal: 

• If the selected designer cannot commit to the development timeline, organisers may select another proposal.