The 36th Ljubljana Bienale of Graphics

The Ljubljana Biennale of Graphic Arts will celebrate its 70th anniversary in 2025 and is one of the oldest biennials in the world. Since its beginning in 1955, the Biennale has showcased the works of around 9,000 artists from 122 countries. Throughout its history, it positioned Ljubljana and Slovenian art into a global context and helped shape the international discourse in the field of printmaking and contemporary art.
When
Sunday, June 8, 10:00
Location
TBD
Ticket
TBD
From 8 February 2025, Nova Gorica (Slovenia) and Gorizia (Italy) start their European Capital of Culture (ECoC) 2025 journey, marking a historic first for a cross-border ECoC. United under the slogan “GO! Borderless,” the two cities embody a shared vision of transcending barriers and fostering unity. Their successful joint bid for the ECoC title was itself groundbreaking, as the first-ever transnational application in the program’s history.
The cross-border ECoC GO! 2025 is centered on the principle of an intentionally open border, celebrating the rich heritage and diversity that thrive on both sides of the border. The concept of a “borderless capital”, serving as a living laboratory for deeper cooperation across nations with different political systems, languages and cultures, is not only symbolic but profoundly relevant in today’s climate. As Europe faces a resurgence of border controls and heightened restrictions, the project offers a bold and hopeful counter-narrative, underscoring the urgency of fostering openness, dialogue, and cultural exchange.
When
Saturday, June 7, 11:00 – 12:00
Location
White Hall
Grand Hotel Union
Miklošičeva cesta 1, Ljubljana
Ticket
€122,00
pre-registration required
Designing for healthcare means thinking beyond aesthetics — it’s about trust, precision, and ensuring safety. We’ll take you behind the scenes of Better’s design system and product design journey, showing how structure, creativity, and constant learning collide when the stakes are high.
Better has been transforming healthcare with the market-leading digital health platform, electronic prescribing and medication administration solution, and low-code tools that help healthcare organisations to rapidly build applications that suit their specific needs. We focus on simplifying the work of health and care teams. We build personalised digital applications and accelerate digitalisation by using low-code development tools. We advocate for data for life and strive for all health data to be vendor-neutral and easily accessible. Better has provided solutions across more than 20 markets, and Better Platform securely supports over 30 million patients. Better has offices in Slovenia, the United Kingdom, and Germany, and currently employs 150 people.
When
Friday, June 6, 10:00 – 17:00
Location
Kavarna Hall
Hotel Slon
Slovenska cesta 34, Ljubljana
Ticket
free entry for ICoD Members and EDA ticket holders
pre-registration required
Melike Taşcıoğlu Vaughan is a designer, artist, and academic based in Türkiye. She is Professor of Graphic Design in Anadolu University, a published author and book designer focused on issues of social justice.
Lawrence Zeegen is Director of the Creative Computing Institute at University of the Arts London and author of nine books on design. A former ICoD Executive Board Member, he brings decades of experience bridging design education, digital practice, and innovation
Iva Babaja is a designer, educator, and former ICoD President (2013–2015). Based in Zagreb, she teaches at Algebra Bernays University and leads Babaja Branding & Design Consultancy, with a career spanning creative direction, policy reform, and international recognition.
Anssi Kähärä is a Finnish graphic designer and co-founder of Werklig. Known for his pragmatic and typographically refined approach, he is the Secretary General of ICoD (2024–2026) and Chairperson of Grafia, with over 25 years of experience in branding, creative direction, and visual communication.
Johnathon Strebly is a strategic facilitator and former President of ICoD. With a deep commitment to systems thinking and community-led design, he helps organizations translate vision into meaningful, values-driven change.
Jonas Liugaila is Treasurer of ICoD (2024–2026) and co-founder of the research and design agency The Critical. Based in Vilnius, he works across business and social impact projects, with a background in design strategy, participatory design, and public sector innovation.
When
Saturday, June 7, 10:00 – 17:00
Location
Glass Hall
Grand Hotel Union
Miklošičeva cesta 1, Ljubljana
Ticket
€122,00
pre-registration required
Anna-Mari Tenhunen is an Art Director and Graphic Designer specializing in creating high-quality print publications. Studying meanings, associations and materiality guides her work and she often closely collaborates with authors and photographers during the design process. Her work has gained recognition in the European Design Awards, ADC Europe Awards and the Communication Arts Design Competition. She completed her studies at the Berlin University of the Arts in 2008 and after over a decade in the city she is now based in Helsinki, Finland, where she runs her own studio.
In this talk Lemke will share insights into working in a design studio at a place where the nearest neighbors are the arctic ocean’s creatures, she will share insights into Gagarin’s unique design approach on interactive storytelling and shine a light on what sets them apart from the mainland.
Nejc Prah is a Slovenian designer. He works with a wide range of clients, occasionally teaches at the Academy in Ljubljana and often gives workshops and lectures in various institutions around the world. He collaborates with Ansambel, a network of designers, illustrators, animators and photographers, which enables him to scale up the studio when needed. He worked as an art director at Bloomberg Businessweek in New York before starting his own studio in Ljubljana in 2019. He earned an MFA from Yale School of Art in 2015 and is a member of AGI.
16:00 CLEVER°FRANKE (Aurelija Mockevičiūtė)
As a Senior Visual Designer at CLEVER°FRANKE, a leading data design and technology consultancy, Aurelija specializes in transforming complex data into engaging, intuitive, and visual narratives. At C°F, she collaborates with clients such as Google, Warner Music Group, and UNICEF to create data-driven experiences that bring clarity to complexity and truly move people. Originally from Lithuania, Aurelija worked at Build in Amsterdam and Bravoure before finding my creative home in Utrecht with CLEVER°FRANKE and discovering her love for data design. Here, she collaborates with brilliant colleagues—designers, developers, project managers, and data analysts—to weave data into narratives that surprise and delight. She is passionate about simplifying the complex and sparking curiosity through design. For her, designing with and for data is like solving a puzzle: she loves the exciting process of uncovering insights and transforming them into visuals that spark curiosity.
CLEVERºFRANKE is a world-leading data design and technology consultancy. With our highly collaborative data design thinking workflow, we partner with clients like Google, Warner Music Group, and UNICEF to create disruptive products and unique solutions. We enable end-users to use data-driven experiences daily to have an impact and drive change.
When
Friday, June 6, 10:00 – 17:00
Location
Glass Hall
Grand Hotel Union
Miklošičeva cesta 1, Ljubljana
Ticket
€122,00
pre-registration required
TBA
Andrej & Andrej is a graphic design studio based in Bratislava, Slovakia, founded by Andrej Barčák and Andrej Čanecký. The two met during their secondary school years and continued their creative journey together through university, where a shared fascination with visual storytelling laid the groundwork for their long-term collaboration. Rooted in curiosity and experimentation, their approach consistently seeks out unexpected ideas with a strong focus on concept-driven design. With expertise in visual identity systems, brand strategy, art direction, custom typefaces, editorial design, and illustration, the studio aims to create its own gravitational pull—drawing in clients from across diverse domains. Their work moves fluidly between sectors while maintaining a cohesive and thoughtful aesthetic. Whether shaping visual identities for public and civic institutions like the city of Nitra, the Public Defender of Rights in Slovakia, or the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Bratislava; designing music festivals from intimate gatherings like Flaam to Pohoda Festival, one of Europe’s leading festivals; or building visual systems for lifestyle brands like the cycling company Isadore. Their process thrives on collaboration and narrative, often involving other creatives—illustrators, typographers, or writers—to enrich each project with unique depth and perspective.
A type walk will take us through the material, historical, cultural and linguistic diversity of letterforms in the heart of Ljubljana. Looking for common design features, we will pay attention to lively compositions, unusual ligatures and innovative diacritical marks.
A walking tour will share subjective observations of formal aspects and uncover details of urban visual communication in Ljubljana that are overlooked in passing. We focus on typography in relation to architecture in its unique, permanent material form, rather than in its reproductive or ephemeral form in printed matter.
The concept of a walk addresses a very important skill that is crucial to typographic education. How to observe type? How to understand what you are looking at?
When
Thursday, June 5, 13:00
Location
Ljubljana center
Ticket
€12,20
pre-registration required
Design Walk in the heart of Ljubljana will take us through seven graphic design studios (Ljudje – EE – AA/Kruh – RAW – Monoform – Tiporenesansa – Visualbraingravity), where we’ll explore their projects, creative processes, and working environments. The event is a rare opportunity to gain insight into the local design scene and casually connect with designers.
When
Friday, June 6, 17:00
Ticket
Free entry
Students from the Institute of Creativity and Innovation at Xiamen University created works that reflect their individual interpretations of ex-centric and eccentric design. Embracing the diversity of creative disciplines and aiming to push boundaries, they were encouraged to explore new design frontiers with an intercultural and interdisciplinary approach. They integrated digital technology, critical thinking and experimental narratives. The diverse outcomes reflect the exhibition’s central theme: a plurality of creative approaches. Each work addresses themes relevant to contemporary society: inclusion, sustainable development, and a shared aspiration for a better global future.
The exhibition explores contemporary graphic design and its historical legacy within four of the six former Yugoslav republics: Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia. It looks at the period between 1960 and today through the thematic lens of radical, unconventional approaches to design that deliberately break established standards, challenge, or even invert the notions of what design and visual communication entail. It leads towards understanding design as a reflective, discursive practice. One that,beyond métier and skill, has something to say about communication itself; about the social and political circumstances in which it arises; about the public space and the ripples it generates within it; and, most importantly, about ourselves.
Founded in the mid-1980s by Lejla Mulabegović, Dalida and Bojan Hadžihalilović while they were still students at the Academy of Fine Arts in Sarajevo, the TRIO design group quickly gained prominence. Before the Bosnian War (1992-1995), their work was highly visible, notably in album designs for renowned Sarajevo pop and rock bands like Bijelo dugme, Plavi orkestar, Bombaj štampa, and Đino banana. They also created striking posters for theater productions at the Yugoslav Drama Theatre in Belgrade, the YU Fest Theatre Festival (directed by Ljubiša Ristić), and numerous other cultural events. Additionally, they designed several covers for the Slovenian magazine Mladina.
During the war, TRIO remained in Sarajevo, contributing to the magazine DANI with cover designs. They also produced a series of posters, “Greetings from Sarajevo,” expressing the resilience of Sarajevo’s citizens and emphasizing the city’s role as a repository of global civilization values. These posters, later printed as postcards in early 1994, garnered international acclaim, including the ICOGRADA Award, significantly boosting their international recognition.
When
Thursday, June 5, 15:00
Ticket
Free entry
The exhibition by the Department of Visual Communication Design at the Academy of Fine Arts and Design, University of Ljubljana, presents projects at the intersection of student creativity and professional boldness, beyond the rigid frameworks of market logic. Located on the city’s edge, it deliberately embraces the periphery—geographically and conceptually. It showcases practices driven by inquiry, critical distance and eccentricity, grounded in international pedagogical excellence. These works do not seek approval through popularity, but aim for relevance in contemporary society, raising new questions about the active role of visual communication in shaping it. The exhibition is both a reflection and a manifesto of our approach: we push boundaries, insist on excellence, and believe in the power of ideas born beyond the centre — yet aimed directly at it.
When
Tuesday, June 3, 18:00
Ticket
Free entry
Students from the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Engineering and the Department of Information and Graphic Technology have, through various course projects, approached their final solutions by exploring unconventional and acceptable responses to the chaos of everyday global reality using interdisciplinary methods. Within the theme ExCentric, they incorporated both analog and digital techniques, aiming to evoke in the viewer a reflection on design, visual, and creative apocalyptic expression.
Students of Visual Communication Design at the Faculty of Design explored diverse expressive possibilities under the theme ExCentric – a concept that encourages reflection on deviation, shifting centres, and transcending convention. The works were created within the Studio for Visual Communication Design VI – Graphic Design and Digital Illustration, where the authors focus primarily on developing their own artistic expression within the field of illustration. In the creative process, various analogue and digital techniques intertwine, as students examined the boundaries between traditional drawing, contemporary visual approaches, and personal interpretations of the chosen theme. Each illustration thus becomes a distinct world – an eccentric reflection of an individual perspective that resists straightforward interpretation and invites contemplation.
When the spotlight dims and the final applause fades, the celebration continues.
Join us for the official ED-Awards afterparty — an evening dedicated to connection, creativity, and good company. It’s the perfect chance to unwind, meet fellow designers, and raise a glass to the remarkable work honoured during the ceremony. Expect great conversations, great music, and an atmosphere buzzing with inspiration and shared passion for design.
When
Saturday, June 7, 22:00
Location
Garden
Grand Hotel Union
Miklošičeva cesta 1, Ljubljana
Ticket
€183,00
(includes access to the ED-Awards ceremony)
When
Friday, June 6, 10:00-12:00
Location
tipoRenesansa
Breg 22, Ljubljana
Ticket
€73,20
(limited number of places available)
The workshop begins with an introduction to tipoRenesansa studio and its mission to preserve and promote traditional letterpress printing technique and tools. Participants will learn how printshops once operated, from hand-setting individual letters to locking the printing form and using a proof press to create prints. The process will be demonstrated step by step, providing insight into the craftsmanship behind historical printing techniques.
Using a common design—usually the Slovene alphabet—the master printer will guide participants through the process, demonstrating how wooden letters are arranged and spaced to create a balanced composition. Participants will actively take part by helping set the type, preparing the press, and inking the form. Once everything is ready, each participant will print their own copy of the shared design, experiencing the traditional workflow firsthand and gaining a deeper understanding of letterpress printing. The workshop offers a unique opportunity to engage with a centuries-old craft and take home a handmade print as a lasting souvenir.
This 90-minute workshop explores how the ICoD Professional Code of Conduct can evolve in response to emerging challenges—particularly the rise of AI. Kyle Rath invites participants to critically reflect on ethics, authorship, and responsibility in an increasingly algorithmic world, using design theory and speculative thinking to shape a more resilient code for the future.
Kyle Rath is a South African researcher, educator, and ICoD Board Member (2024–2026). He lectures in Information Design at the University of Pretoria and holds a PhD focused on signification in the age of generative AI, with a research focus on the intersection of design, ethics, and emerging technologies.
For the European Design Festival in Ljubljana we have secured a special rates on a wide variety of hotels (from 3 to 5 stars). You can secure these discounts by following the specific instructions when making a reservation.
Grand Plaza Hotel and Congress Centre Ljubljana *****
Slovenska cesta 60
Offer price from €159/per night
Please fill in this form and forward your requests to both emails: ebru.mumcuoglu@grandplazahotel.si and
reservations@grandplazahotel.si
Hotel Slon *****
Slovenska cesta 34
Offer price from €159/per night
Please follow this link for your special rate
City Hotel ****
Dalmatinova ulica 15
Offer price from €159/per night
Please follow this link for your special rate
Grand Hotel Union ****
Miklošičeva cesta 1
Pricing and availability depend on the capacity of the hotel.
Please send your booking requests with code EDF and the name Grand Hotel Union to: sales@exelev.com
Eurostars uHotel ****
Miklošičeva cesta 3
Pricing and availability depend on the capacity of the hotel.
Please send your booking requests with code EDF and the name Grand Hotel Union to: sales@exelev.com
B&B Hotel Ljubljana Park ***
Tabor 9
Offer price from €110/per night
Please send your booking requests with code European Design Festival 2025 to: grpsales-ljubljana@hotelbb.com
ibis Styles Ljubljana Center ***
Miklosiceva cesta 9
Offer price from €125/per night
Booking Code: EDA025 (enter the Preferential code under Special rates). Enter the code for the reduced rate on the first page under “Choose your room”, 3 box is special rates, where you enter EDA025.
BY PLANE
Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport is Slovenia’s main international gateway, located about 24 kilometres northwest of the capital. It offers regular connections to major European hubs such as Frankfurt, Munich, Zürich, Brussels, and Istanbul, operated by carriers including Lufthansa, Turkish Airlines, and SWISS.
Keep in mind that there are also several nearby airports that may offer convenient alternatives depending on your location and flight availability ( (see distance from Ljubljana in km):
Trieste Airport (121 km)
Venice Marco Polo Airport (233 km)
Treviso Airport (228 km)
Zagreb Airport (152 km)
Vienna Airport (338 km)
AIRPORT TRANSFERS
You can travel from your airport to EDF Ljubljana by shuttle or private transfer — whichever suits
you most.
If you would like to travel with a shuttle please reserve your seat on this link.
You can reserve your shuttle directly to your address or your hotel.
For a private transfer, please reserve it by contacting luka.lojk@nomago.si. The driver will await you
at the terminal.
Travelling from Ljubljana airport?
Shuttle ride
The price is €12/per transfer.
At the terminal, you follow floor signs for the shuttle and Nomago and you will get to Nomago checkpoint.
Private transfers
The price is €75/per transfer, and a return transfer is €150.
Travelling from Trieste airport?
Shuttle ride
The price is €20/one way.
At the terminal, follow the floor signs for Shuttle and Nomago to reach the Nomago checkpoint.
Private transfers
The price is €170/per transfer, a return transfer is €150.
Travelling from Venice either Marco Polo or Treviso Airport?
Shuttle ride
The price is €28-33/per transfer, a return transfer is €56.
When you land the driver will greet you outside the terminal and contact you via SMS.
Private transfers
The price is €240/per transfer, and a return transfer is €480.
Travelling from Zagreb Airport?
Shuttle ride
The price is €20/per transfer, however, for an early morning departure the price is €35. A return
transfer is €40.
When you land the driver will greet you outside the terminal and contact you via SMS.
Private transfers
The price is €180/per transfer, and a return transfer is €360.
Travelling from Vienna Airport?
Shuttle ride
The price is €38 – 43/per transfer, and the return transfer is €76.
When you land the driver will greet you outside the terminal and contact you via SMS.
Private transfers
The price is €340/per transfer, and a return transfer is €680.
Every year, the European Design Awards celebrate outstanding achievements in communication design.
In 2025, the awards ceremony — followed by the traditional winners’ party — will take place on Saturday, 7 June, at the historic Grand Hotel Union in the heart of Ljubljana, a landmark of Art Nouveau elegance and a symbol of the city’s vibrant creative spirit.
When
Saturday, June 7, 19:00
Location
Grand Union Hall,
Grand Hotel Union
Miklošičeva cesta 1, Ljubljana
Ticket
€183,00
(includes access to the after party with a welcome drink)
Get in touch
EUROPEAN DESIGN AWARDS © 2022. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Design Federation OÜ | Estonia, Narva mnt 7a-404, 151 72 Tallinn, Reg.No: 12958895