Jury 2022 - IDEA 2023

Jury 2022

Alexander Lotersztain

Alexander Lotersztain

Alexander Lotersztain is an Argentinian-born Australian designer and founder of the highly awarded multi-disciplinary design studio Alexander Lotersztain Studio and Furniture brand Derlot. Alexander has worked in Tokyo with highly respected studios GK Design Group and IDÉE honing his product and furniture design. After living and working in Milan and Barcelona, Alexander returned to Brisbane in 2006 to set up Derlot. Alexander brings with him a wealth of knowledge across a range of creative disciplines in a truly collaborative and human centred approach to design.

Eva Sue

Eva Sue

A principal at Woods Bagot, Eva Sue is a specialist and leader in hotel and hospitality design, driven by a multidisciplinary ethos that blurs the lines between work and lifestyle. Drawing on her 15 years of experience delivering a breadth of projects in the UK, Europe, UAE and Australia, Eva believes designers are cultural curators whose role is to uncover narratives and turn these stories into suites of spatial experiences that celebrate the history and the environment, and foster a deeper connection between people and place.

Nina Maya

Nina Maya

After a career in fashion dressing the likes of Cate Blanchett for the red carpet, Nina Maya turned her attention to interiors and founded her eponymous design studio in 2015. The studio takes on around 10-12 projects a year and has completed several projects internationally, such as two penthouses in Bejing, a superyacht in the Bahamas, and a mansion in San Francisco. Known for its tailored, polished spaces and precise, considered approach, Nina Maya Interiors has built a reputation for its unique customization of interiors to suit each individual project and client.

Pascal Gomes-McNabb

Pascale Gomes-McNabb

Pascale is a critically acclaimed, award-winning Melbourne-based designer. PGMD, Pascale’s eponymous studio, works at the intersection of—and draws inspiration from—architecture, art, travel, food, nature and culture. An ex-restaurateur, Pascale has created some of Australia’s most respected, award-winning establishments—Cumulus Inc., Cutler & Co, Penfolds’ Magill Estate Restaurant and Stokehouse, among others. PGMD’s design projects take a holistic approach, encompassing interior architecture, furniture, objects, and lighting to create visually engaging, functional, intuitive and seamless environments.

Sarah-Jane Pyke

Sarah-Jane Pyke

Sarah-Jane Pyke’s meticulous attention to detail, coupled with an eye for beautiful and unexpected combinations, has been finely honed through her work with respected architectural firms. Co-founding Sydney-based design practice Arent&Pyke in 2007, her work encompasses interior architecture and design with a unique focus on the decorative arts and a fine-tuned philosophy around what it means to make a space sing. While creating a multi-award winning practice and earning the respect of industry peers, the value Pyke brings remains in the emotional connections she create and how those, in turn, drive aesthetic and practical decisions. Together, Arent&Pyke have created some of Australia’s most distinctive and beautiful homes and hospitality venues, gathering countless accolades along the way.

Valerie Saveedre Lux

Valerie Saveedra Lux

Valerie is a firm believer that the built environment can be a catalyst to regenerate the planet. As the Regenerative Practice Lead at BVN Architects, she is co-developing the overall vision, strategy and structure for Regenerative Practice to align with BVN’s core purpose and vision to be ‘smarter, more creative and better for the planet’. She has collaborated on several award-winning architectural, urban design and interiors projects with a strong sustainability focus and was the recipient of the Royal Institute of British Architects Paul Davis Award and a Bronze Medal commendation for her framework for social, environmental and economic sustainability for informal settlements in India. She is also a member of the National Steering Committee of ‘Architects Declare Climate and Biodiversity Crisis’, which aims to empower architects to take action to create a regenerative future.

William Smart

William Smart

William Smart is the founder and creative director of Smart Design Studio, established in 1998. His approach to design is holistic, combining both architectural and interior design with passionate attention to detail. Over the past 23 years, Smart Design Studio has delivered a wide range of projects ranging from large-scale master planning, cultural buildings, offices, and workplaces to private houses and product design. Although varied in scale, the projects are united by an ethos of ‘Architecture from the Inside Out’.

Yasmine Ghoniem

Yasmine Ghoniem

Based in Sydney, Ghoniem is the founding director of multidisciplinary studio YSG, which encompasses an interior design practice with the offering of new architectural builds and renovations across diverse sectors around the globe, plus custom-designed ranges for the home. The provocative chords of her imagination were fuelled by spending formative years between Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Australia. And the results have garnered countless accolades during her nearly 20 years of experience. In 2021 she won Designer of the Year at the Interior Design Excellence Awards, and in January she featured in Europe’s Architectural Digest’s definitive AD100 list.