DesignLab was a six-month program consisting of a series of workshops for graphic designers led by the artistic director of the established studio Milk. The aim was to provide young designers from all over Slovakia with a unique opportunity to gain rich experience in complex visual communication and thus enrich their portfolio, gain competitive advantage, and new contacts.
DesignLab by CIKE x Milk
Education and mentoring
About
Structure
Thanks to DesignLab, we got to know eleven young talented designers who got a unique chance to learn from a person with more than 20 years of experience. During the six full-day workshops, the participants, led by a mentor, went through several topics which are key to quality visual communication at a professional level. Several of them were supplemented by the knowledge of invited experts from the field. For instance, Lucia Pašková, then the director of the successful company CURADEN Slovakia, joined us for one of the workshops.
- Who is a designer, and what should he/she master?
- Basic business knowledge
- Target audience and basic principles of communication and marketing
- Building a brand
- Creative process
- Sales and self-promo
Mentor

Outcome
Thanks to this program, selected firms had an exceptional opportunity to use a strong creative team to solve their challenges. For example, GlobalLogic joined the program, and participants, led by the mentor, helped define their target audience and proposed changes in their branding.The idea of DesignLab was to increase the quality of local designers and promote cultural and creative industries in Slovakia. Our task was to act as a facilitator and enable change, connecting disciplines and sectors with a simple vision – to move the city of Košice forward. Take a look at the graphic designs that the designers prepared at the end of the program.