MESSAGE FROM IDI President MARC O'RIAIN: ?END OF YEAR?REVIEW

It feels like the end of another year for us here at the IDI, but we still have another four months before the end of the IDI year. So far 2015 has been pretty eventful. 

 
We have just completed a seriously eventful November with Iterations 2nd issue launched at the IDI Graduate Design Awards and exhibition in Grangegorman. The event was run by John Walsh with the exhibition design by Peter MacCann, which then moved onto the very successful Universal Design in Education conference at Dublin Castle.

The IDI Awards exhibition followed in the Teeling Distillery run by Andrew Bradley. Then onto the IDI Irish Design Awards in the Marker on the 26th run by the incomparable Mary Doherty and the team at Red Dog with Peter Whittaker from Martello Media in technical control. The awards had the biggest entry ever, with the highest attendance and was sold out in advance. The work entered was very, very competitive with some Commended work likely to have won a trophy in another year. Minister Bruton accepted the Lifetime Achievement Award for the state on behalf of the late Eileen Gray. Dr. Jennifer Goff spoke very eloquently on how impressive Eileen Gray was and in a sense how much we owe to her legacy. The event ran late into the night and was a great way to top out a great year. Was great to see a good deal of press coverage too!
 
During November, the IDI hit its highest membership levels ever with four fold increases, exceeding targets set in April, meaning we will keep individual membership rates at the discounted level of €150 next year. No inflation here except in member numbers! We now have a very high membership from the colleges, a growing number of companies and an almost full range of design professionals. It is worth noting the IDI sets an education bar on entry under-lining the fact that we are a professional body.
 
The recession of course had a massive impact on all design organisations and the IDI was no different. But we are back, and stronger than ever, now the largest body of Professional Designers on this island. I believe we can triple this number in as many years and create a serious national lobby for design on this Island. 
We now have 27 Registered Designers in Ireland who are committed to 20 CPD points each year, 7 Senior Members of the IDI and 14 Fellows of the IDI all through the new Registered Designer process. The process has seen more than 50% of applicants not make the grade, underlining that the process is rigorous and thorough.  https://www.idi-design.ie/registered-designer/apply
 
On the back of that we are busy preparing new CPDs next year around the country led by Aileen Dempsey. We are getting together topics like Infographics, UX, Illustration, Business, Patent Box, Marketing, Lighting and Fashion. We are very open to suggestions so if you want something in particular, please let us know. 
 
Design Social ran its last event of the Design and Cocktails series in November and this was a massive success thanks to IDI Council member Paul Finnegan. We hope to launch a new series in January. We would love to see design socials and design talks in the regions! 
https://www.facebook.com/ididesignsocial/
 
In November, we also launched Designer Discounts, so IDI members have access to important discounts that affect them. We now have discounts or deals on Public Indemnity Insurance, Accountants, Free Domain names, printing, classic furniture and computer technology. 
https://www.idi-design.ie/resources/member-offers/
 
Most of this we see on our new and ever augmented website which was supported and designed by Karen Hanratty in Pixel Design. We are working with ID2015 on a website to connect designers throughout the country. 
 
As ID2015 draws to a close, I think we can all agree it has been enormously positive and created a new dialogue with the design industry which didn’t exist before. Although there was a focus on exhibitions and events, we did see a lot of very positive actions that should see a lasting legacy. Iterations and Faultlines in particular stand out as highlights that will go beyond 2015.

The dialogue with government agencies may yet bear some fruit and it would be great to see the Design Innovation voucher scheme rolled out across the country. The IDI received several funding packages which helped us to develop the membership and the travelling exhibition. We produced and collaborated in a few mini documentaries on design which are great and well done to John Walsh in particular. The ID2015 team should be highly commended on their work to date.
 
I think we need to start a real dialogue on what is design in this country, in particular how can we support the design service sector. To grow design in this country we need to devise strategies and policies that are specific to both design consultancy and in-house design. 
 
The dated policies and strategies that define the Crafts Council’s mandate, mean that much of government support goes predominantly to small often one-person craft enterprises via the DCCOI for objects made in Ireland. This may well suit the crafts, but for design services to grow we need to see policies and supports that impact design practices, creating new income and new jobs. A lot of members have highlighted issues with Government Procurement practices. We recently met with the IDA, EI and DJEI and they accept something should be done both to streamline procurement of design, and to inform design service providers of how to access government funding. It was great to see how open the government partners were. It was also noted that many design practices are too small to compete internationally and perhaps our sector suffers from a scaling challenge. Con Kennedy is doing immense work in this area valuing the design sector.
 
This type of dialogue should be happening regularly at a Design Council, represented by the professional bodies like the IDI, RIAI, ICAD, NIDA, iXDA and Animation Ireland who generally represent the vast majority of the design profession in Ireland with key stakeholders like the Department of Jobs Enterprise and innovation (DJEI), Enterprise Ireland (EI) and the IDA. I believe the establishment of such a Council to be a priority.
 
I believe that we should all be working together a little more anyway to push this agenda. As ID2015 closes out perhaps this is a key legacy. If the Government doesn’t form a Design Council, I believe that we should start that ball rolling. 
 
The IDI is transitioning to a limited company to make sure we stay tax compliant with all the new activities. Many thanks to President-Elect George Boyle and Aileen Dempsey for their efforts in organising this. 
Next year, I will be prioritising the development of Regional IDI Chapters around the country to underpin local design activity and support the creation of Design Hubs in regional cities. 
 
It has been a great year and I have been proud to be serving as your President this Christmas, many thanks to every volunteer at all levels and all events which helped support Design in Ireland this year! Finally, many thanks to the team in the IDI office, Denis O’Kelly and Roisin O’Brien. 
 
Well done and Nollaig shona dhuit,
 
Marc O'Riain
FIDI, MIAD, CPHD, B.Des

President of the Institute of Designers in Ireland 
Fellow of the IDI & Registered Designer in Ireland