The Arts Foundation Te Tumu Toi Laureate Award

Crane Brothers Laureate: Celebrating 25 Years of Craftsmanship and Creativity

To mark the 25th anniversary of Crane Brothers, founder Murray Crane has established the Crane Foundation—a new initiative dedicated to supporting contemporary art, design, and culture in Aotearoa New Zealand.

At the core of this initiative is a strategic partnership with The Arts Foundation Te Tumu Toi and the establishment of a new Laureate Award for Design. This prestigious award recognises exceptional achievements in design across a range of disciplines, including industrial and product design, architecture, interior design, and sustainable innovation.

The award offers a prize of $30,000 and will be presented every two years to a design artist whose work challenges conventions, inspires innovation, and enriches New Zealand’s creative landscape.

This new award expands The Arts Foundation Te Tumu Toi Laureate Awards programme and highlights a shared commitment to celebrating design as a vital art form in Aotearoa.

Crane Brothers Design Award: A New Chapter for New Zealand Design

The launch of the Crane Foundation marks a new chapter in our journey as a brand deeply embedded in New Zealand’s cultural fabric. Through this initiative, we are investing in art, design, and culture to preserve and nurture the creative spirit that defines our nation. By collaborating with The Arts Foundation Te Tumu Toi, we aim to support excellence and innovation in these fields. The Crane Brothers Design Award is just the beginning of this long-term vision.

Design plays an essential role in serving human needs, solving problems, and bringing joy. It influences everything from the objects we use to the spaces we inhabit and often involves collaboration. This award is a meaningful addition to The Arts Foundation Te Tumu Toi’s Laureate line-up, celebrating the impact of design on our environment. It acknowledges the critical role designers have played—and continue to play—in shaping all aspects of our lives.

The inaugural recipient of the Crane Brothers Design Award was announced on Friday, 18 October 2024, at the Laureate Awards Party in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, alongside the other Arts Foundation Te Tumu Toi Laureates.