Celebrating the Design Journey: Commonwealth Games Medals at The Glasgow School of Art

Celebrating the Design Journey: Commonwealth Games Medals at The Glasgow School of Art
10th July – 8th August 2026
Window on Heritage

Inspired by the Glasgow 2026 Festival theme of ‘Celebration’, this exhibition brings the medal design process to life. Featuring materials from The Glasgow School of Art Archives & Collections alongside film, this immersive exhibition follows the creative journey behind the making of both the 2014 and 2026 Glasgow medals, from first sketches to finished objects, opening up the process from the inside. The Glasgow School of Art’s international reputation in Silversmithing & Jewellery makes it a natural partner for the Commonwealth Games medals — a relationship that has shaped both the 2014 and 2026 designs. 

The medals from 2014 were made by award-winning artist, designer, jeweller and academic, Dr Jonathan Boyd, capturing the industrial history and uniqueness of Glasgow. The 2026 medals have been designed by award-winning artist, designer, silversmith and GSA graduate Militsa Milenkova, originally from Bulgaria, exploring her connection to the city as her chosen home. Featuring braille and tactile elements for the first time in the history of the Commonwealth Games, the 2026 medal ensures inclusion is tangible and physically felt in the hands of every athlete. Inspired by Glasgow’s shipbuilding heritage, rich landscape and coat of arms, the medal takes the form of a Reuleaux triangle, featuring the iconic Finnieston Crane, Scottish tartan and the three tiers of the podium, forming a rich surface and story to be unravelled and discovered.  

 The exhibition will feature materials including original sketches, design proposals and wax and 3D printed models alongside medals, commemorative and fashion pieces from the 2014 games.   

It also premieres Designing the Games, a short film by BAFTA Scotland-winning filmmaker and GSA graduate Callum Rice. Weaving together process, archive material and voices from across the school, the city and the Games, the film explores reach, impact and legacy, and its role in shaping the next generation of designers. 

Connecting the objects, the making, and the stories that carry across cultures and bring people together, the exhibition traces the design decisions, materials, feelings and ideas that shape a symbol of sporting excellence, cultural identity, friendship and belonging. 

Militsa Milenkova is an award-winning artist, designer, metalworker and silversmith based in Glasgow. She holds a BA (Hons) in Silversmithing and Jewellery from The Glasgow School of Art.  Her practice centres on creating objects as a way of expressing thoughts, emotions, and personal reflections. Drawn to ideas that spark her curiosity, she uses material experimentation to explore them further. Through a process-led and material-driven approach, her work pushes the boundaries of contemporary metalsmithing by combining refined technical skill with conceptual enquiry. Through her work, she examines the everyday and the overlooked, questioning how value and meaning are assigned to objects. By reinterpreting familiar forms, materials and objects, Militsa invites viewers to reconsider what is precious and why. Her work prompts quiet reflection on worth, memory, materiality, and the evolving role of contemporary craft within design and art. Militsa’s work has been exhibited nationally and internationally, is held in private collections and includes high-profile commissions. 

The curator of the exhibition, Izzy Laishley, is an emerging interdisciplinary curator interested in art as a form of experience, to create shared spaces for exploration, play, immersion, reflection and feeling. She holds an MA in philosophy from KU Leuven, Belgium and is completing an MLitt in Curatorial Practice (Contemporary Art) at the Glasgow School of Art.