Royal Designer for Industry is a distinction established by the British Royal Society of Arts (RSA) in 1936, to encourage a high standard of industrial design and enhance the status of designers. It is the UK’s highest design accolade and is awarded to people who have achieved “sustained design excellence, work of aesthetic value and significant benefit to society”.

Selection criteria and faculty structure Those who are British citizens take the letters RDI after their names, while those who are not become Honorary RDIs (HonRDI). Everyone who holds the distinction is a Member of The Faculty of Royal Designers for Industry (founded in 1938).

Their work is diverse, ranging from fashion to engineering, theatre to product design, graphics to environmental design.

New RDIs are elected annually and the Faculty continues to support initiatives to further excellence in design, including an annual Summer Session to inspire new generations of thinkers to design a better world.

Only 200 designers may hold the distinction RDI at any time and it is regarded as the highest honour to be obtained in the United Kingdom in a diverse range of design disciplines. In addition, the RSA may confer HonRDI titles up to a maximum of half the number of people who currently hold the distinction RDI.

New RDIs are awarded Diplomas each year at the annual RDI Dinner. Every two years a new Keeper of the Faculty is elected by the past Keepers, who include Dinah Casson, Mike Dempsey and Sir Kenneth Grange. The current Keeper is Johanna Gibbons.

Current members The list identifies current RDIs, the date of their award, and the category of design for which they were honoured.

RDIs Name Category Year Graphic design 2025 Multidisciplinary 2025 Multidisciplinary design 2025 Data visualisation design 2025 Stone carving and the design of monuments 2025 Furniture design 2002 Illustration and design 1980 OBE Furniture design 2007 Engineering design 1995 Costume design 2022 Environmental design 2010 Interaction design 2009 Graphic design 1983 CBE Graphic design 1981 CBE Illustration 1987 MBE Costume and set design 2005 Graphic design 2011 Architectural design 2017 Graphic design 2002 Product design 1998 Set & costume design 2013 OBE Graphic design 2011 Product design 1981 Engineering design 2006 Engineering design 2004 Engineering design 2006 CBE Product design 1974 Type design 1981 Graphic design 2013 Furniture design 1971 Interior design 2005 Fashion Design 2013 CBE Interior design 2006 Production design 2009 Production design 2009 Architecture 2010 Product/Furniture Design 2018 OBE Film production design 2004 Textile design 2006 Theatre and film design 1997 Graphic design 1994 Illustration 2018 OBE Theatre design 2018 TV and theatre design 1975 Theatre design 1988 CBE Engineering design 2005 Textile design 1984 Designing with sound 2012 Graphic design 2001 Graphic design 2009 Graphic design 1974 Illustration 1985 Futures Design 2021 , Baron Foster of Thames Bank Interior design 1988 Textile design 1998 CBE Fashion design 2002 MBE New media 2000 Engineering design 2007 Stamps 1970 CBE General design 1969 Landscape design 2012 Graphic Design 2014 OBE Exhibitions 1974 Furniture design 1978 Graphic design 2005 TV Production design 1990 Engineering design 1993 General design 2004 Production design 2008 Interior design 2009 Graphic design 1997 Furniture design 2004 Graphic design 2005 Fashion design 2007 Theatre design 1999 Fashion design 2009 Ceramics and glass 1981 Engineering design 2005 Exhibitions & museum design 1964 KBE Product design 2003 Fashion design 1988 Interior design 1991 Textile design 1989 OBE Millinery 2009 Interior design 2007 Product design 1990 Textile design 2008 Furniture design 1990 Engineering design 2001 Graphic design/typography 1994 TV graphics 1987 Graphic design and caricature 1999 Theatre design 2003 Boat design 1987 Ceramics & glass 1995 Product design 1995 Production design 2008 Film and TV graphics 1982 Product design 2003 Book design 1973 Structural engineering design 2004 Designing with light 2012 Interior design 2005 Graphic design 2004 Graphic design 1987 Theatre design 2004 Production design 2006 CBE Engineering design 1989 Naval architecture 1986 Illustration 2013 CBE Furniture design 2001 Small craft naval 1995 Communication design 2017 Theatre & film design 1996 CBE General design 2006 Theatre design 1991 OBE Furniture design 2007 CBE Animation 2006 Engineering design 2012 Interior design 2005 OBE Engineering design 2006 Landscape design 2012 Product design 2008 Costume design 1999 Costume design 2013 OBE Dress design 1969 CBE Jewellery design 1999 Engineering design 1994 Textile design 2011 Information design 2017 DBE Fashion and textiles 1976 Engineering design 1997 Product design 1999 Illustration 1989 CBE Graphic design 2011 CBE Illustration 1989 OBE Graphic design 2006 CBE Fashion design 1978 Interior design 2005 Service design 2018 RIBA Product design 1986 Textile design 1995 Film and TV design 1998 Interaction design 2007 Jewellery design 2010 DBE Fashion design 2001 Engineering design 1995 Architecture 2012 Landscape design 2009 Interior design 2009 Structural engineering 1998 Graphic design 2011 Furniture design 2003 Designing with light 2013 OBE Engineering design 2013

HonRDIs Name Category Year Transmedia design 2025 Structural design 2025 Textile design 1987 Graphic design 2000 General design 1991 Shoe design 2001 General design 2008 Glass design 2008 Graphic design 1991 Graphic design 2005 General design 2007 Film and TV graphics 2001 Graphic design 1998 Design forecasting 2013 Product design 2013 Furniture design 1987 Illustration 2006 Theatre and film design 1992 Product design 2007 Graphic design 2006 Furniture design 2009 Interaction design 2012 Landscape and gardens 2001 Illustration 1968 Product design 2004 Interaction design 2012 Product design 2023 Fashion design 2001 Furniture 1979 Furniture design 2002 Textile design 1983 Graphic design 2002 Furniture & product 2001 Product design 2000 General design 2006 Graphic design 2011 Lighting design 2005 Product design 2005 Textile design 1997 Textile design 1997 Fashion design 1988 Graphic design 2003 Ceramic design 2004 Textile design 2004 Illustration 2023 Fashion and textiles 1988 Landscape design 2023 Landscape design 2021 Bio design 2021 Automotive design 1983 Textile design 2007 Electrical appliances and furniture 1968 Interaction design 2012 Graphic design 2021 Landscape design 2009 Illustration 1989 Illustration 1986 Type design 2007 Architecture 2021 General design 1973 Costume design 2007 Fashion design 2008 General design 1996 Engineering design 2006 Fashion design 2006 General design 2008 Architecture 2012

Former members

Past RDIs Past Royal Designers for Industry Tony Abbott, Television & theatre design, 1972 Ken Adam, Film production design, 2009 Edward Ardizzone, Illustration, 1974 Hardy Amies, Dress design, 1964 Edward Abbott, Illustration, 1974 Jon Bannenberg, Motor yachts, 1978 Christian Barnard, Transport equipment, 1948 Edward Bawden, Graphics, 1949 Gerald Benney, Silversmithing, 1971 Misha Black, Exhibitions & interiors, 1957 John Box, Film production design, 1992 Bill Brandt, Photography, 1978 William Brown, Bridge design, 1977 Stefan Buzas, Exhibitions & interiors, 1961 Reco Capey, General design, 1937 Andy Cameron, Interactive design, 2011 Hugh Casson, Exhibitions, 1961 Achille Castiglioni, General design, 1986 Hulme Chadwick, Product design, 1974 Colin Chapman, Automotive design, 1979 Wells Coates, General design, 1944 Christopher Cockerell, Engineering design, 1987 Douglas Cockerell, Bookbinding, 1936 Susie Cooper, Pottery, 1940 Kay Cosserat, Textile design, 1986 Edward Gordon Craig, Stage design, 1937 Gordon Cullen, Illustration & townscape design, 1975 Robin Day, Furniture & exhibitions, 1959 Lucienne Day, Textiles, 1962 Richard Eckersley, Book design, 1999 Tom Eckersley, Posters, 1963 Alan Fletcher, Graphics & publicity design, 1972 Uffa Fox, Small boats, 1955 Barnett Freedman, Graphics, 1949 Roger Furse, Stage & film design, 1949 Abram Games, Posters, 1959 James Gardner, Exhibitions, 1947 J Laurent Giles, Yachts, 1951 Eric Gill, Typography & wood engraving, 1936 Robert Goodden, General design, 1947 Duncan Grant, Printed textiles, 1941 Eileen Gray, Furniture & interiors, 1972 Milner Gray, Packaging, 1937 E W Grieve, Shop window display, 1940 Jacqueline Groag, Textile design, 1964 Edmund Happold, Engineering design, 1983 Geoffrey de Havilland, Aircraft, 1944 Ashley Havinden, Graphics, 1947 Lionel Haworth, Engineering design, 1976 Ambrose Heal, Furniture, 1939 F H K Henrion, Packaging & graphics, 1959 Jocelyn Herbert, Theatre & cinema design, 1971 Robert Heritage, Furniture, 1963 George Him, Graphic design, 1977 James Hogan, Glass & stained glass, 1936 Paul Hogarth, Illustration, 1979 Charles Holden, Transport equipment, 1943 Jack Howe, Products and industrial equipment, 1961 Allen Hutt, Typographic & Newspaper design, 1970 James Irvine, Product design, 2004 Laurence Irving, date tbc Alec Issigonis, Motor cars, 1964 Ralph Koltai, Theatre design, 1984 Natasha Kroll, Shop display and television design, 1966 Lynton Lamb, Book design & illustration, 1974 Osbert Lancaster, Illustration, 1979 Margaret Leischner, Textiles, 1969 Richard Levin, Television design, 1971 Noel London, Engineering product design, 1973 William Lyons, Motor cars, 1964 Ethel Mairet, Woven textiles, 1937 (first woman)Margot Coatts, ‘Mairet , Ethel Mary (1872–1952)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, Oct 2007 accessed 19 Oct 2015 Eric de Maré, Photography, 1997 Enid Marx, Pattern design, 1944 J H Mason, 1936 James McNeill, Ships, 1950 David Mellor, Silver, cutlery & lighting, 1962 Percy Metcalfe, Medals & coinage, 1937 Francis Meynell, Typography, 1940 Bill Moggridge, Product design, 1988 Edward Molyneux, Dress, 1950 Stanley Morison, Type design & typography, 1960 Alastair Morton, textiles, 1960 Alex Moulton, Engineering Products, 1968 Jean Muir, Dress design, 1972 H G Murphy, Goldsmithing, 1936 Keith Murray, Glass, pottery & silver, 1936 Charles Nicholson, Yachts, 1944 Julia Trevelyan Oman, Theatre & film design, 1977 Brian O'Rorke, Interiors, 1939 Eric Carlton Ottaway, Road passenger vehicles, 1949 Derek Prime, Engineering design, 1982 Ian Proctor, Boats & small craft, 1969 Tom Purvis, Commercial art, 1936 Ernest Race, Furniture, 1953 A B Read, Light fittings, 1940 A A Rubbra, Engineering design, 1977 Gordon Russell, Furniture, 1940 R D Russell, Furniture, 1944 Hans Schleger, Exhibition display & packaging, 1959 Hans Schmoller, Typography, 1976 Douglas Scott, Industrial designer, 1974 Ronald Searle, Illustration, 1991 George Sheringham, Interior decoration & textiles, 1936 Peter Simpson, Woven Textile design, 1974 Percy Delf Smith, Lettering, 1940 Antony Armstrong-Jones, 1st Earl of Snowdon, Photography, 1986 Basil Spence, Exhibitions & interiors, 1960 Herbert Spencer, Typography, 1965 Harold Stabler, Pottery, Enamelling & silversmithing, 1936 Richard Stevens, Product design, 1973 Reynolds Stone, Lettering, 1956 Marianne Straub, Woven textiles, 1972 Derek Sugden, Engineering design, 2009 Fred Taylor, Graphics, 1936 Philip Thompson, Graphics & illustration, 1997 Walter Tracy, Type design, 1973 Howard Upjohn, Engineering product design, 1973 C F A Voysey, Interior decoration, furniture & fabrics, 1936 Barnes Wallis, Aircraft, 1943 Allan Walton, Printed textiles, 1940 Neville Ward, Interior design & ship interiors, 1971 John Waterer, Leather Goods, 1953 Hans Wegner, Furniture, 1969 Robert Welch, Product design & silversmithing, 1965 Frank Whittle, Engineering design, 1985 Berthold Wolpe, Typefaces & lettering, 1959 Anna Zinkeisen, Graphics & mural painting, 1940

Past Honorary RDIs Past Honorary Royal Designers for Industry