Media release: New Cape Town design prize invites creatives to reimagine life at sea
The Jo Fensham Yacht Furniture Design Prize 2026, presented in collaboration with the Cape Institute for Architecture (CIFA), is a new cross-disciplinary design competition inviting Cape Town-based architects, interior designers, and industrial and product designers to explore the future of freestanding outdoor furniture for the yacht environment.
Led by Tariq Fensham, Managing Director of Jo Fensham Yacht Upholstery, the Prize brings together architecture, design, craftsmanship, and life at sea. It builds on Jo Fensham’s forty-five-year legacy in yacht interiors and reflects a vision of Cape Town as a place where marine innovation, design culture, and creative thinking intersect.
Entrants are invited to develop a coherent family of three outdoor yacht furniture pieces – a dining chair, a two-seater sofa, and a coffee table – in response to a brief that celebrates Cape Town’s identity, its boatbuilding excellence, and its distinct relationship with ocean, landscape, and lifestyle.
The Prize is open to registered professionals, candidates, and students in architecture, interior design, and industrial and product design, provided they are practising, studying, or permanently resident in Cape Town and registered with a relevant professional body or accredited educational institution. Registration opens on 4 June 2026 at 19h00 and closes on 16 July 2026 at 17h00. Final entries close at 12h00 noon on 30 September 2026.
The competition includes first, second, and third prizes, together with a People’s Choice award, and offers entrants not only prize money but also recognition and visibility across the worlds of architecture, design, furniture, creativity, and boatbuilding. The exhibition, People’s Choice voting, and winner announcement will take place at First Thursdays in November 2026 at the CIFA Gallery in Cape Town.
Tariq Fensham, Managing Director of Jo Fensham Yacht Upholstery, said:
‘I’ve always felt that I have one foot in two of Cape Town’s most extraordinary industries – architecture and boatbuilding. This Prize is a way of bringing those two worlds together and inviting designers to create something original, exciting, and truly rooted in this place and this lifestyle.’
Vanessa Davidson, Executive Manager of the South African Boat Building Export Council and Founding Director of Blue Cape, said:
‘Cape Town’s boatbuilding sector is one of South Africa’s great manufacturing success stories. This Prize creates an exciting bridge between design and boatbuilding, and opens the door to fresh thinking around comfort, lifestyle, craftsmanship, and innovation on board.’
Michael Borgström, architectural designer and past President of the Cape Institute for Architecture, said:
‘Furniture design has always sat close to architecture. This Prize is such a natural and exciting partnership because it gives designers the opportunity to engage with furniture, craft, and marine life in a way that is imaginative, ambitious, and deeply connected to Cape Town.’
The Prize is intended not only to generate strong new ideas, but also to highlight Cape Town’s position as a global centre of catamaran building, boatbuilding expertise, design talent, and marine innovation. Selected concepts may ultimately contribute to the future development of outdoor yacht furniture through Jo Fensham Yacht Upholstery.
For more information about the competition and to download the brief and enter, visit jofensham.com or cifa.org.za.
About Jo Fensham Yacht Upholstery
Jo Fensham Yacht Upholstery is a Cape Town-based specialist in bespoke yacht upholstery and interior soft furnishings for the global boatbuilding industry. With more than forty years of experience, the company is known for precision, craftsmanship, and tailored solutions across yacht interiors, exterior upholstery, mattresses, bed linens, and related soft furnishings.
Find out more at https://jofensham.com/ or by emailing tariq@jofensham.com
About CIFA
The Cape Institute for Architecture (CIFA) is the largest regional architecture body in South Africa. Established in 1899, the Institute serves both its members and the broader public by promoting excellence in architecture, supporting innovation and integrity within the profession, and contributing to the quality of the built environment in Cape Town and beyond.
Find out more at https://cifa.org.za/ or by emailing info@cifa.org.za
