by Gudbjorg Gissurardottir, Reykavijk, Iceland

As late as after 1950, the Icelandic language had no particular word for “design”. This indicates clearly how short the history of Icelandic design has been. Our neighboring countries in Scandinavia had a significant head start in this field . Although we have a great deal in common with Scandinavian design today, there are also many strong contrasts. Icelanders could be likened to the adolescent in the group: full of hormones, wracked by growing pains, and fighting vigorously for independence.

The Icelandic design gene
As the General Manager of the Icelandic Design Forum, I have come to know numerous Icelandic designers, their work and their ideas. It was not long till I realized the difficulty of defining Icelandic design as something fixed and tangible. Foreign guests have agreed with me on this point. After only two weeks at this post, I hosted six French journalists who had travelled here to write about Icelandic design. Arranging a two-day itinerary, I accompanied them around Reykjavík, where we visited Icelandic designers and design shops, along with viewing a student show at the Iceland Academy of the Arts. Not only were these two days pleasurable and informative for them, but no less for me. At the end of their visit, I asked them about their experience of Icelandic design and found their answer quite interesting. They all agreed that the best word to describe such design was “energy”. Wherever they went, they noticed a creative power in our design, an enthusiasm and boldness. Upon considering this more closely, I concluded that they were right: Icelandic design culture is simmering with energy.

Read more about design in Iceland at www.icelanddesign.is

Gudbjorg Gissurardottir is the General Manager for the Iceland Design Forum. The Forum was established in May 2005. Gudbjorg has a master degree from Pratt Institute in NY in communication design. Before starting at the Design Forum she was working with Graphic design and branding and she published her own cookbook.