The Exhibition of Croatian Design, organized by the Croatian Designers Association, is the central and most important professional design event in Croatia. It showcases the finest design works created over a two-year period across all areas of design practice, including visual communication and graphic design, industrial design, packaging design, spatial intervention and systems, interaction design and digital media, critical or conceptual design, textile, fashion, and clothing design, and more.
Since 1999, the exhibition has presented the best of professional production by Croatian designers, design studios, and agencies. It also includes a student section that offers insight into current achievements in higher education design programs. The reputation and significance of these exhibitions are underscored by the fact that from 2010 to 2020, they were held at the Museum of Arts and Crafts, one of the most visited and prestigious museum institutions in the region. Since 2022, they have taken place in one of the most vibrant exhibition spaces – Lauba – House for People and Art.
The opening of the exhibition will take place on Friday, January 10, 2025. During the opening event, there will also be a promotion of the printed catalog, titled Croatian Design Review 23/24, and the official awards ceremony for the Croatian Designers Association Awards.
The works submitted for this exhibition undergo a rigorous critical selection process conducted by the Selection Committee and an International Jury, comprised of some of the leading authorities in various fields of professional design, including not only designers but also curators, critics, and design theorists. The Selection Committee for this year’s exhibition includes Sarah Baron Brljević (digital product designer, Porsche Digital Croatia), Lana Cavar (visual communication designer), Lana Grahek (visual communication designer), Sven Jonke (product designer, Numen/For Use), Maša Milovac (product designer), Sean Poropat (visual communication designer, Studio Sonda), and Gala Marija Vrbanić (visual communication and fashion designer). The International Jury, which will decide on the awards, includes members of the Selection Committee along with two international members: Nita Salihu Hoxha and Peter Bilak.
This year’s categories are: Visual Communication Design, Book and Publication Design, Industrial/Product Design, Digital Media and Interaction Design, Packaging Design, Textile, Fashion and Clothing Design, Comprehensive Project/Product, Spatial and Graphic Interventions and Systems, and Concept/Initiative/Critical Design. Awards and Special Recognitions from the Croatian Designers Association (HDD) will be granted in all categories. During the opening of the exhibition, the HDD Lifetime Achievement Award will also be presented. This year, the HDD Board has awarded this honor to Mladen Orešić.
Additionally, the Grand Award of the Croatian Designers Association will be given to the best work in the Croatian Design Exhibition 23/24. This award is given to a project that, according to the International Jury, stands out significantly from the rest of the design production through its quality, innovation, complexity, or a clear and strong message. The Selection Committee has nominated the following works:
Modern Times – Documentary Series
Author, Producer, Screenwriter: Dubravko Merlić
Author, Producer, Composer: Matej Merlić
Director: Tomislav Šoban
Co-screenwriter: Matea Milić
Director of Photography: Ante Cvitanović
Set Design: Maja Merlić
Graphic Design: Klasja, Zita & Andrea
Editors: Urša Vlahušić, Doris Dodig
Costume Design: Katarina Zaninović
Expert Contributor: Zvonko Maković
Project Partners: Museum of Arts and Crafts, Museum of Contemporary Art, Nikola Tesla Technical Museum, Zagreb Film
Production: Castor Multimedia
Commissioned by: Croatian Radiotelevision
Realization: December 2023
74th and 75th Dubrovnik Summer Festival
Design: Zoran Đukić
Contributors: Neva Zidić (design, 2024), Nikola Zelmanović (photography, 2023), Luka Kedžo (photography, 2023)
Commissioned by: Dubrovnik Summer Festival
Realization: 2023–2024
Kasper Andreasen – High Capacity
Design: Toni Uroda
Contributor: Kasper Andreasen (editor)
Commissioned by: Kasper Andreasen, Berlin M HKA, Antwerp Roma Publications, Amsterdam
Completion Date: September 2023
The printed book Croatian Design Review 23/24 is a foundational biennial publication that highlights the finest Croatian design production from the past two years. Spanning approximately 300 pages, it features works selected for the biennial Exhibition of Croatian Design 23/24. The publication is more than a catalog. Its first segment includes essays and interviews by domestic and international experts in design practice, criticism, and theory, addressing current trends as well as methodological, social, and cultural aspects of design practice. It aims to contextualize, critically examine, and archive the current moment in Croatian design. The second and largest segment provides detailed presentations of all selected works across nine categories: visual communication, product/industrial design, fashion design, electronic media, and more. Each project includes graphic and photographic reproductions, accompanied by short texts explaining the ideas and processes behind their realization. The third segment highlights the activities of the Croatian Designers Association over the two-year period between exhibitions. The publication is bilingual (Croatian-English).
All participants in the Exhibition of Croatian Design 23/24 receive a free copy of the publication (one catalog per selected work, up to a maximum of three copies per author/team for multiple works). Additional copies can be purchased at a discounted price by exhibition participants and HDD members.