DOTY 2025 Awards winners: Meet these 3 visionaries who are redefining design

by Aisha Capulong

Illustrious projects decorate the portfolios of these 3 names in design and at the 2025 Designer of the Year Awards, we celebrate this very fact as high achievement by recognising them through the Lifetime Achievement Award and Asia's Most Influential Designer Award

At the heart of all greatness are forces of ingenuity that aptly lead the way, and often times, with a tendency of making it appear effortless. This year’s recipients of the Lifetime Achievement Award and AMIDA portray this skillfully: their influence in the design world is one that not many can easily admit to replicate.

Recipient of the 2025 Lifetime Achievement Award - Kengo Kuma

Aptly named the Lifetime Achievement Award, the accolade is distinctly the highest honour at the annual DOTY Awards with a catalogue of past recipients like Philippe Starck and Satoshi Ohashi, who are recognised industry leaders whose endeavours have contributed immeasurably to the development of the global design landscape.

This year, Kengo Kuma is granted the title at the Designer of the Year Awards Gala Dinner for his undeniable impact on the world of architecture and design. Having established his studio Kengo Kuma & Associates in 1990, the architect went on to not only design incredible works but also write books, monographs and take on professorships around the world, all while building the studio into a brand that is unapologetically poignant it no longer needs an introduction. (Don’t take our word for it, check out their official website — it has no ‘About’ page!)

Some of the studio’s most recent notable works include The St. Regis in Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea, the Cave of Light & Shadow at Suzhou Museum’s West Hall as well as The Exchange in Sydney. Here’s a look into Kengo Kuma & Associates’ trailblazing projects:

About Asia's Most Influential Designer Award (AMIDA)

First established in 2017, the Asia’s Most Influential Designer Award (AMIDA) recognises innovative and first-rate design talents regionally and internationally. Concept influences within the design realm can come from anywhere in the world, and what matters most is a successful delivery of the space’s functionality and liveability. Some celebrated names that have made for AMIDA’s cohort of awardees include Kelly Hoppen and Alexander Wong. In 2025, the DOTY Awards initiative distinguishes two design studios and its founding members as Asia’s Most Influential Designers.

Recipient of the 2025 Asia's Most Influential Designer Award - PTang Studio

Spearheading PTang Studio, Philip Tang & Brian Ip have worked on projects all across Asia Pacific. With a focus on perfecting the ‘basics’, the studio constantly seeks to innovate both on design and quality, which in turn has given their approach a unique and visionary character. The dynamic duo brought along an air of certitude in their dispositions as they received their award on stage, and it is one of modesty and affable confidence in their work. It is easy to see why: PTang Studio is behind a number of remarkable projects like the MORI sales gallery & show home in Hong Kong, the ‘Copper’ whisky club in Kunming and the stunning collection of Lake Legend show villas and sales galleries in Bangkok.

Lake Legend Lago Lugano show villa, Bangkok

Lake Legend Bangna-Suvarnabhumi Sales Gallery, Bangkok

Recipient of the 2025 Asia's Most Influential Designer Award - Bean Buro

Lorène Faure & Kenny Kinugasa-Tsui, co-founders of Hong Kong-based Bean Buro, are loudly and proudly dedicated to environmentally conscious design. Advocates in developing the field through creative direction and behind-the-scenes research, the accomplished couple continues to endeavour for an ecosystem — both around and within Bean Buro — that entails storytelling as a fundamental element at the heart of every project. In attendance at the 2025 DOTY Awards Gala Dinner in Kuala Lumpur, Lorène & Kenny are an immediately amicable pair who both speak with a level of enthusiasm that brightens the whole room. Under their positive leadership, Bean Buro has worked on great ventures such as a Singaporean wellness brand’s 22,000 sq.ft HQ, Warner Music Hong Kong’s Kowloon Bay location and the refurbishment of the World Trade Centre in Hong Kong.