The Loewe Foundation Craft Prize Returns to Madrid With an Assist from Pedro Almodóvar

On a warm evening in late May, guests gathered in the tranquil courtyard of Madrid’s Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum for the 2025 Loewe Foundation Craft Prize ceremony. Though celebrities like Ayo Edebiri, Lesley Manville, as well as Loewe’s newly appointed creative directors Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez, were among the crowd, the attention wasn’t on them. The true stars were the 30 finalists and their works on display inside—a range of pieces created with ancient craft techniques, from basketry and metal to ceramics and woven textiles—and each selected from over 4,600 submissions representing 133 countries and regions. This year, after sojourns to New York, Paris, Seoul, London, and Tokyo, the event and its corresponding exhibition returned to its original home in Madrid, the birthplace of Loewe and site of the inaugural Craft Prize in 2017.

“It feels very emotional to come back home,” said Sheila Loewe, president of the Loewe Foundation, in her opening remarks. “The shortlisted works remind us that craft is alive, thoughtful, daring, and deeply connected to the world we live in. They show how materials, techniques, and stories can be reimagined with vision and integrity.”

Acclaimed filmmaker and longtime Madrid local, Pedro Almodóvar later presented the award, reflecting on the broader significance of the evening. “It is an honor to be here,” he said, “especially in a time when we hear so much about the extinction of nature, skills, and a way of life we thought would exist forever. The artists in the exhibition represent a continual need to remain curious. I encourage you all to slow down and spend time with the works.”

The top prize, which includes €50,000, went to Japanese artist Kunimasa Aoki for his work Realm of Living Things 19, a striking anamorphic sculpture built by layering terracotta coils in an ancestral process that utilizes pressure, time, gravity and meticulous kiln firing to create what Aoki refers to as “little universes.” The resulting form feels at once ancient and contemporary. “It’s funny because you might think it was 3D printed, but it’s not," said Sheila Loewe during a preview earlier that afternoon. "He creates magic, layer by layer."

Andrés Anza, the 2024 Craft Prize winner and a member of this year’s jury alongside Sheila Loewe, essayist and architect Frida Escobedo, architect Wang Shu, and others, spoke candidly about how they landed on Aoki, a high school design teacher, as the winner: “I was trying not to be biased about ceramics, because obviously it’s my field,” he said. “But together, we all came to the same choice—it was actually my first choice, and I’m really glad.”

The jury also awarded two special mentions. Nigerian designer Nifemi Marcus-Bello was recognized for TM Bench with Bowl, a piece crafted from reclaimed aluminum that explores themes of trade, globalization, and consumerism. Inspired by his experience of buying a used car and having it shipped to Lagos, the work examines both the waste and lifecycle of industrial materials.

Studio Sumakshi Singh, based in Gurugram, India, also received a special mention—presented in a surprise appearance by Meg Ryan—for Monument, a life-sized recreation of a historic column from Delhi’s 12th-century Qutub Minar Complex. The piece was created by weaving copper zari thread onto a water-soluble fabric, which, when dissolved, left only the delicate flattened structure behind in what the museum program notes is “an allegory for the degradation and disintegration of images over time.”

Founded in 2016 by the Loewe Foundation and then-creative director Jonathan Anderson, the Craft Prize was established to showcase and celebrate innovation, excellence, and artistry in contemporary craft. But the initiative has since grown into something much more—a global community of over 240 artisans and craftspeople who have become finalists over the years. “It’s like a family, this thing, and it’s really warm,” said Anza. Sheila Loewe echoed the sentiment: “I have to be careful because I have two biological sons,” she said, laughing, “but we’re creating this Craft Prize family, and it’s filled with very special members. We always say we’re not working just for the winner or the special mentions. We’re working for all 30—and the best is yet to come.”

The 2025 shortlisted works will remain on display at the Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum through June 29 and can be viewed virtually via the Loewe Foundation’s digital platform, The Room.