New York Festivals Advertising Awards® (NYF) announces the 2026 Design Specialty Executive Jury, a distinguished panel of globally respected creative leaders assembled to recognize the year’s most compelling work across brand systems, packaging, and product design.
New York Festivals has assembled a world-class Design, Package & Product Design jury of accomplished design innovators from leading studios, agencies, and cultural institutions.
The Executive Jury, led by Emily Oberman, Partner at Pentagram, will evaluate the shortlisted entries selected by NYF’s Shortlist Jury to identify work that exemplifies creative excellence in visual craftsmanship and elevates the role of design in shaping brand identity and consumer experience.
Jury Chair, Emily Oberman is a celebrated graphic designer whose work has shaped some of the world’s most recognizable brands across entertainment, culture, and commerce. As a Partner at Pentagram, her multidisciplinary practice encompasses visual identity, motion graphics, brand strategy, naming, packaging, editorial, and advertising, grounded in a belief in the power of language, humor, and emotional connection. Perhaps best known for her work in entertainment, she has designed the title sequences for Saturday Night Live for more than two decades and has collaborated with leading cultural and media brands including NBC, Warner Bros., Warner Music Group, DC, and the Tribeca Film Festival. Prior to joining Pentagram, she co-founded Number Seventeen and began her career at M&Co. working with Tibor Kalman. Oberman was awarded the prestigious AIGA Medal in 2022 and has taught at Yale School of Art, Cooper Union, Parsons, and the School of Visual Arts.
“I’m truly excited to chair the New York Festivals Advertising Awards® (NYF) for Design. It’s a chance to have of my favorite minds in one room, in REAL LIFE, to look at and discuss the best in design, packaging, and product design right now. There is magic when humans get together to talk about what is happening in our fields, and I am looking forward to being part of that magic and sharing it with the world.” —Emily Oberman.
2026 Design Specialty Executive Jury
Executive Jury Chair – Emily Oberman, Partner, Pentagram, United States
Hilary Greenbaum, Director of Graphic Design and Brand Creative, Whitney Museum of American Art (leads the museum’s visual identity across all platforms, former New York Times Magazine designer.)
Larrissa Marquez, Managing Director, Design, Rethink (drives design-led business transformation at the intersection of creativity, strategy, and operations.)
Debbie Millman, Designer, Author, Illustrator, Educator; Host, Design Matters; Executive Fellow, Harvard Business School (one of design’s most influential voices and pioneers in brand thinking.)
Can Misirlioglu, ECD, Design, CYLNDR Studios (multidisciplinary creative leader with experience spanning R/GA, Havas, and Decoded, shaping brand systems for global clients.)
Jodi Terwilliger, Executive Creative Director (creative director and systems thinker with experience across COLLINS, Magic Leap, BUCK, and HUSH, working across brand, spatial, and interactive design.)
Matty Woodward, Head of Design, Code and Theory (Emmy-nominated creative leader working at the intersection of design, storytelling, and emerging technology.)
Piotr Woronkowicz, Partner / Industrial Design, Pentagram (industrial designer working across product, packaging, furniture, and environments, translating brand identity into three-dimensional form and experience.)
Forest Young, Global Design & AI Resident, Wolff Olins (former Global Head of Brand at Rivian; Cannes Lions Gold Design Lion winner; exhibited at MoMA.)
“As design continues to shape how brands are experienced across every touchpoint, its role has never been more vital,” said Scott Rose, President, New York Festivals. “With Emily Oberman at the helm and this exceptional jury of global design leaders, we’re proud to honor work that brings together craft, innovation, and cultural impact to define today’s visual landscape.”
New York Festivals is proud to partner with AIGA, the leading professional association for design, to spotlight the power of exceptional creativity in advertising. This inaugural collaboration brings AIGA’s expertise to category development and jury selection, marking the first step in a long-term partnership that elevates NYF’s peer-driven judging experience and celebrates design that shapes culture, commerce, and visual storytelling.
For the 2026 season, New York Festivals continues to elevate its judging experience through an expanded in-person program developed in partnership with the 4A’s, reinforcing its commitment to thoughtful, peer-driven judging.
Specialty Executive Jury sessions will be held in May 2026.
The deadline for entering the 2026 NYF Advertising Awards is April 23, 2026. To enter the 2026 NYF Advertising Awards and for more information on categories, rules, and regulations, visit HERE.
