IT IS a rare year that the Victoria & Albert Museum doesn't have an award win or two under its belt. It isn't always an obvious choice - a gallery or a show - it can be a graphics project, a shop or a digital installation. The London museum has fared well in the Design Week Awards over time. Last year, for example, it was commended for the Porter Gallery, created by Block Architecture, and shortlisted for the blockbuster exhibition The Golden Age of Couture: Paris and London 1947 1957, designed by Land Design Studio. Inthe past it has scored for projects such as the permanent British Galleries, beautifully crafted by Casson Mann, and the William Morris posters, with their acanthus-leaf imagery, which was one of the first projects to put the prolific Johnson Banks on the awards map. The V&A has long been associated with design. Established in 1852 as the Museum of Manufacturers as part of the legacy of the Great Exhibition of the previous year, it acquired its current name in 1899 in honour of Queen Victoria and her design-savvy husband Prince Albert, and now claims to be the world's biggest museum of decorative arts. It has at least tried to pioneer modern architecture in London, commissioning the ill-fated Spiral extension from controversial architect Daniel Liebeskind and establishing the architectural collection in partnership with the Royal Institute of British Architects. The £120m ambitious refurbishment scheme FuturePlan, spearheaded by architect Eva Jiricna, has so far pened up the courtyard garden and added new galleries and a new museum shop in the central Gallery 43, among other things. The second phase is kicking off now. The museum is, meanwhile, renowned in graphics for the prestigious V&A Illustration Awards. It has also studied the best way to caption exhibits in the ceramics gallery. Its site on the fringe of London's Brompton Quarter puts it within a museums 'campus' that includes the Natural History Museum and the Science Museum, both also stalwarts in design awards. But perhaps more important is its closeness to the Royal College of Art in physical and cultural ways. The strength of the V&A lies in its commissioning. Since its current director Mark Jones took the helm in June 2001, we have seen a shift in emphasis from a traditional curatorial approach to one that reflects more of what is happening now,with popular exhibitions and events running alongside the carefully curated collections. Chandeliers by Ron Arad have appeared in the foyer, the Friday Late sessions on the last Friday evening of each month have brought in a new crowd and collaborations with the likes of D&AD and the Crafts Council have made the V&A even more relevant. This may be one of those rare years, with the V&A featuring as an eminent long-term design player in the Hall of Fame, but not making it on to the podium to collect a Design Week Award or other accolade. But thatdoes not diminish its position as a powerful champion of design, which also earned it a listing in Design Week's Hot 50 this year. We certainly haven't seen the last of this one.