Slovak Design Award 2024

Slovak Design Award: The Highest Recognition in the Field of Design in Slovakia

In 2023, the Slovak Design Award celebrated its 30th anniversary as well as its 20th edition. In 2024, it entered its fourth decade.

Slovak Design Award (NCD as Slovak abbreviation) is a prestigious nationwide competition and the highest recognition in the field of design in Slovakia. Its main objective is to support, recognize, and present design creators and manufacturers, as well as help Slovak designers establish themselves internationally. The NCD encourages clients and manufacturers to collaborate with professional designers, stimulates theoretical research and professional publishing in design, and documents the development of design in Slovakia.

Slovak Design Award 2024: Communication Design

In its 21st edition, Slovak Design Award focused on contemporary communication design. A record-breaking 555 projects were submitted to the competition, which curator and juror Juraj Blaško considers evidence of the high standard of visual culture in Slovakia. The selection of projects was overseen by an international jury composed of experts in communication design: Juraj Blaško (SK), Zuzana Husárová (SK), Róbert Slovák (SK), Vasyl Kosiv (UA), Filip Blažek (CZ), Justyna Kucharczyk (PL), and Eduardo Barrera Arambarri (MX).

Competition Process and Selection of Nominations

In the first round of the competition, the jury selected 155 projects to advance to the next evaluation phase. After a two-day meeting held on July 1–2 at the Slovak Design Center in Hurbanove kasárne, the jury selected 139 works for the exhibition and from these chose 37 nominations in the following categories: Campaign, Identity, Books and Publications, Digital, Space, Typeface, Packaging and Object, Poster and Visual, New Horizons, and Student Design. In the Motion Design category, no nomination or award was granted due to an insufficient number of projects meeting the jury’s requirements.

Presentation of Nominated Works and Award Ceremony

Throughout the summer, the public had the opportunity to become familiar with the nominated works through the NCD and Slovak Design Center social media profiles, which introduced one competition category each week. The official announcement of the laureates of the prestigious Slovak Design Award took place on November 11 at the Nová Scéna Theatre in Bratislava.

National Design Award 2024 Also Visited Košice

For the first time, the National Design Award, Slovakia’s most prestigious design recognition, left Bratislava and came to Košice. From February 12 to March 14, 2025, visitors could see 139 works by 137 authors representing the best of Slovak communication design from 2022–2024. The exhibition included 11 categories of communication design and presented a cross-section of outstanding achievements in Slovak design practice. This unique presentation was not only a celebration of design artistry but also an impulse to support creativity and collaboration in the region.

The opening of the NCD24 exhibition in Košice took place on February 11 and was preceded by a guided tour with curator Juraj Blaško.

Nominations for the Slovak Design Award 2024 in the Campaign Category

DAAD — Days of Architecture and Design 2023 – Matúš Buranovský, Daniel Šmíra
ISTROPOLITANA PROJECT ’23 – Matúš Hnát (co-author: Barbora Podola)
(I Don’t) Want to Stay Here – Peter Hajdin, Peter Simonik, Andrej Maruška, and agency Komplot
NCD 2023 – Tereza Maco, Aurélia Garová, Jozef Sklenka (co-authors: Peter Liška, Jakub Teringa)
Nastenka: A Voice Against Russian Propaganda – THIS IS LOCCO agency

Nominations in the Identity Category

Corporate Identity for the Palma Development Project – Wiktor Leo Burnett agency, Ján Zachar
Animation Festival Network – Marek Menke
Velice – Mikina Dimunova

Nominations in the Books and Publications Category

MYKO – Palo Bálik, Daniela Olejníková
Tabloid 2022 – Palo Bálik
Mosaic of Bratislava: Hidden Tiles and Cladding – Barbara Kowalczuková, Michal Tornyai (co-author: Čierne diery civic association)
Backstage Talks Issue #7 – Martin Jenča, Chloe Scheffe (co-author: Michaela Novosadová)
Meanwhile City – Terézia Denková, Dominik Fodora (co-authors: Matej Mihályi, Martin Jenča)

Nominations in the Digital Category

SNG Atlas – Filip Ruisl, Lukáš Štepanovský (co-authors: Katarína Vass, Igor Rjabinin, František Michal Sebestyén, Rastislav Chynoranský, Marián Horkovič, Romana Halgošová, Branislav Matis, LAB SNG)
Website for NEXT – Robert Finkei (co-author: Jon Dujaka)

Nominations in the Space Category

Project & Process of the SNG Information System – Branislav Matis, Pavlína Morháčová, Beáta Paňáková (co-author: Ondrej Jób)
Navigation and Identity for the Municipal Office in Leopoldov – Marcel Benčík (co-author: architectural studio zerozero)
BIATEC – CELTIC MINT – Peter Liška

Nominations in the Typeface Category

Pannonia – Ondrej Jób
Romboid – Display – Samuel Čarnoký
SNG Sans – Ondrej Jób
QOD Typeface for Vehicle Registration Plates – Simona Császárová, Michal Tornyai

Nominations in the Packaging and Object Category

Longital Dočista – Juraj Behún
JURAN from Modra. Wine Product Line and Labels – Marcel Benčík
Labels for Bažalik Winery – Tereza Maco (co-author: Jakub Teringa)

Nominations in the Poster and Visual Category

Poster Series for Kiosk Festival 2022 – Barbara Kowalczuková, Ester Mládenková
BRaK 9: Not Being Afraid to Keep Growing – Matúš Hnát
SINGULARCH 2022 – Matúš Hnát
SINGULARCH 2023 – Matúš Hnát

Nominations in the New Horizons Category

Living Questionnaire – Anna Ulahelová (co-author: Branislav Matis)
CRITICAL DE?!GN 2022 – DESIGNERS TROUBLEMAKERS – Katarína Balážiková, Lenka Hámošová
Non-Places – Tereza Maco (co-authors: Lucia Mlynčeková, Miroslav Tóth)
Typogaráž 2022, 2023 – Terézia Denková (co-author: Maris Nisu)

Nominations in the Student Design Category

EuroTypes – Adrián Dvorský, Monika Juríková, Ester Mládenková
FUTURE (newspaper) – Veronika Kurcinová, Adam Zakucia
Publication – Initial Initiative Initialization of Initials – Simona Császárová
RETROSPECTA 45 – Filip Birkner, Jisung Park

Organizing Team

NCD Coordinator: Zuzana Böhmerová
Director of the Slovak Design Center: Maroš Schmidt
Exhibition and Public Program Production: Gabriela Rybáriková
PR and Media Contact: Barbora Lenďáková
Cooperation: Slovak Museum of Design

Curator

Juraj Blaško

Jury

Juraj Blaško (SK), Zuzana Husárová (SK), Róbert Slovák (SK), Vasyl Kosiv (UA), Filip Blažek (CZ), Justyna Kucharczyk (PL), Eduardo Barrera Arambarri (MX)

Graphic Design

Barbara Kowalczuková, Terézia Denková

Competition Organizers