Designers Society of Slovenia
The Designers Society of Slovenia (DSS) brings together top designers from a wide range of creative and design-related spheres. The core objectives of the society are promoting the profession, organising retrospective exhibitions and other public presentations of the society membersâ work, and creating links between the profession and its users and customers. Designers within the society are organised into a number of sections: visual communications, industrial design, unique design, scenography, and costume design. Society members are kept up-to-date on competitions, exhibitions and festivals in the field. They also participate as judges for such competitions and tenders, with the DSS providing expert advice as early as the drawing up of competition terms and conditions. Members are professionally engaged in the sections through various activities such as organising exhibitions, issuing competitions, membership in expert panels, promoting foreign and domestic design festivals, running professional excursions, lectures and similar.
The Visual Communication Section unites creators from the field of visual communication design. The Industrial Design Section unites industrial designers, interior designers and interior equipment and fittings designers. The Unique Design Section is for designers working on unique products in various materials: including textiles, ceramics, glass, wood, and metal. The Scenography and Costume Design Section brings together designers working in dramatic and musical theatre, film, television and puppetry.
Any Slovenian citizen or company registered in Slovenia actively involved in design or offering teaching or training in any design area can become an active DSS member. Foreign citizens actively involved in the profession in Slovenia can also become DSS members. Individuals or groups supporting the societyâs work (individuals, labour organisations and professional associations) may also contribute in the work of the society.
The DSS was founded in 1951 and is the only professional association in Slovenia to unite designers from all areas of design. The society has been a full member of ICSID (International Council of Societies of Industrial Design) since 1961. In 1963 the society took part in the founding congress of ICOGRADA (International Council of Graphic Design Associations) in Bled and has influenced the development of the institution, which has set out the most important and still valid rules on quality evaluation in the field of visual communication design. Respecting the criteria defined by ICOGRADA is one of the main commitments of its members, which includes the DSS.
The DSS is a co-founder of the Architecture Museum in Ljubljana and the international BIO (Biennial of Industrial Design) and the author of the event concept. The DSS was also involved in establishing the curriculum council for higher education studies at the University of Ljubljana, the Slovenian Copyright Agency, the Slovenian Chamber of Culture, and defining evaluation criteria for design services. The numerous awards won by DSS members have helped establish the society among the Slovenian and international public.
Contact details
Designers Society of Slovenia / Društvo oblikovalcev Slovenije
Ciril-Metodov trg 19
SI-1000 Ljubljana
