International Council of Societies of Industrial Design (Icsid) was founded in 1957 from a group of international organizations committed to industrial design. Today Icsid is a global organization that promotes better design around the world. Today, Icsid includes over 150 members in more than 50 countries, representing an estimated 150,000 designers.
The primary aim of the association is to advance the discipline of industrial design at an international level. To do this, Icsid undertakes a number of initiatives of global appeal to support the effectiveness of industrial design in an attempt to address the needs and aspirations of people around the world, to improve the quality of life, as well as help to improve the economy of nations throughout the world.
Vision
Icsid strives to create a world where design enhances our social, cultural, economic, and environmental quality of life.
Mission
1. To facilitate collaboration between the membership pillars of Icsid
2. To support and protect the professional practice of industrial design at regional and international levels
3. To contribute to the advancement of the study of design in theory, research and practice at all levels of education
4. To collaborate with stakeholders in design and other international organisations to foster a global understanding of design
Today, Icsid facilitates co-operation and interaction among its Member Societies, providing a global force through which independent organizations can combine resources and efforts.
History
The idea to create an international body representing the interests of industrial designers was first presented by Jacques Vienot at the Institut d’Esthetique Industrielle’s international congress in 1953. A more formal commitment on the part of his colleagues and counterparts at other national design associations was made at a further international meeting in 1955. But it was not until June 29, 1957 at a special meeting in London that Icsid was officially founded, under the name of the International Council of Societies of Industrial Designers. This name, coupled with the fact that the twelve founding members were all national professional design associations, demonstrates the spirit with which Icsid was established – to protect the interests of practicing designers and to ensure global standards of design. The individuals that were elected to the first Executive Board therefore did not act upon personal conviction, but rather they represented the voice of their own society members and national design community.
Soon after this meeting, the organization was officially registered in Paris and the Secretariat was set-up at 17 Quai Voltaire. Icsid’s early aims were to raise the status of industrial designers, to raise the standard of industrial design by setting standards for training and education, and to encourage cooperation between industrial designers.
In September of 1959 the first Icsid Congress and General Assembly were held in Stockholm, Sweden. The Congress was the first of what would become the largest world event in Icsid’s calendar – one that still continues to this day. The Congress and GA were restricted solely to Icsid members, which had already grown to 23 societies from 17 countries. It was on this occasion that the Icsid Constitution was officially adopted, along with the first definition of industrial design, which read as follows:
1. An industrial designer is one who is qualified by training, technical knowledge, experience and visual sensibility to determine the materials, mechanisms, shape, color, surface finishes and decoration of objects which are reproduced in quantity by industrial processes. The industrial designer may, at different times, be concerned with all or only some of these aspects of an industrially produced object.
2. The industrial designer may also be concerned with the problems of packaging, advertising, exhibiting and marketing when the resolution of such problems requires visual appreciation in addition to technical knowledge and experience.
3. The designer for craft based industries or trades, where hand processes are used for production, is deemed to be an industrial designer when the works which are produced to his drawings or models are of a commercial nature, are made in batches or otherwise in quantity, and are not personal works of the artist craftsman.
This was the beginning of Icsid’s role in shaping industrial design. The General Assembly also voted to change Icsid’s name from the International Council of Societies of Industrial Designers to the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design. The change would allow the future growth of the organization beyond matters of professional practice.
Icsid continued to grow quickly and by the end of the 1960s included over 40 members from more than 30 countries. Icsid had turned its outlook to the world as a whole and in its first ten years had hosted Congresses in Venice, Paris, Vienna, Montreal and London. By 1973, the Congress in Kyoto attracted 2000 delegates.
During this time there was a great deal of work carried out in the development of industrial design education. Icsid organized three seminars to examine the issues at stake with defining academic standards for a new profession and to make recommendations for the future. In 1968 a fourth seminar was held in Argentina. This particular seminar dealt with the issue of industrial design education in developing countries. The work from each of these seminars was instrumental to Icsid’s ability to counsel and advise its members on industrial design education standards.
The 1960s also witnessed a growth within Icsid’s membership to include a number of non-capitalist countries of the time. This changed Icsid’s outlook from being somewhat insular to being an inclusive and truly outward-looking organization that transcended political boundaries. In this sense, Icsid became a bridge between two worlds, where industrial designers from all backgrounds could meet, exchange and learn from one another. Icsid members relished in the spirit of collaboration that was inspired by the inclusive nature of Icsid’s work.
Icsid also continued to work on matters of professional practice during this time, adopting and revising the definition of industrial design, which read as follows:
* The function of an industrial designer is to give such form to objects and services that they render the conduct of human life efficient and satisfying. The sphere of activity of an industrial designer at the present embraces practically every type of human artifact, especially those that are mass produced and mechanically actuated.
The structure and focus of Icsid was becoming much more diverse. Commencing in 1963, Icsid was granted special consultative status with UNESCO, with whom Icsid would subsequently work on many developmental projects, using design for the betterment of the human condition. In 1969, a third definition of industrial design was proposed by Tomas Maldonado, it read as follows:
*Industrial design is a creative activity whose aims is to determine the formal qualities of objects produced by industry. These formal qualities are not only the external features but are principally those structural and functional relationships which convert a system to a coherent unity both from the point of view of the producer and the user. Industrial design extends to embrace all the aspects of human environment, which are conditioned by industrial production.
By 1971, however, Icsid had removed any definition from the constitution in a motion passed at the Ibiza General Assembly. The motion symbolized a fundamental shift in the outlook of the organization.
Also, in 1971 an idea was put forward to create a new type of seminar that would bring together industrial designers from around the world in a host country to study a problem of both regional and international significance. The idea came as a response to a feeling amongst designers that they should break with the narrow concept of product-oriented design. That idea, combined with the objective of the Icsid working group on education to expand its activities beyond the needs of design students, resulted in the first Icsid Interdesign seminar. These seminars were unique in their ability to provide opportunities for professional development of mid-career practicing designers, and focus their abilities on resolving issues of international significance. The first such seminar was held in Minsk (former USSR) in the spring of 1971. It dealt with two projects: design proposals for the systems and devices required for the mechanization of processes for loading, handling, transportation to and marketing of all kinds of bread in self-service, and design proposals for street furniture and associated items which were to be applied to one of the important streets of Minsk. This Interdesign would be the first of many such workshops that would take place through Icsid’s history and consolidate Icsid’s position as a driving force of international collaboration.
In 1973, international collaboration reached a new high for Icsid with the Kyoto Congress and General Assembly, hosted by the Japan Industrial Designers’ Association. The event, based on the theme ‘Soul and Material Things’, was revolutionary for Icsid as it brought the western and Asian design worlds together for the first time on Asian soil. One of the more innovative elements of the congress was the involvement of the city and community of Kyoto. The organizers implemented a program where 1000 bicycles were provided for use by participants to commute from the hotels to the congress Hall and to discover for themselves the way of life of the Japanese people. From this time onwards, Icsid’s place as a worldwide voice for industrial design was solidified.
In 1974, the Icsid Secretariat moved from Paris to Brussels, at 34 avenue Legrand.
Collaboration was a prominent theme during the 1980s, when the first joint Icsid/Icograda/IFI Congress was held in Helsinki in 1981. This event was the direct result of the recommendation made by Icsid members to explore closer ties with other world design organizations. At their respective General Assemblies, unanimously approved a directive to investigate options for a closer working relationship in the future.
In 1985, a groundbreaking Interdesign was held by Icsid and UNESCO and in coordination with Icograda. The issue under investigation was the design of basic medical equipment for developing countries. The seminar brought together 4 doctors, 14 industrial and graphic designers, and 7 assistants to develop designs for basic furniture for rural health centers, packaging, transport, refrigeration, and injection of vaccines and the design of data collecting devices for field use. This Interdesign served as further evidence of the power of design as a tool for development in developing countries, and the role that Interdesign play in this.
Through the 1990s Icsid continued to develop its role on the international stage, hosting congresses in Slovenia, Scotland, Taiwan, Canada and Australia. Interdesigns were held on themes as broad as design strategies for regional development, transportation for the future and sports and leisure in Europe, Asia and Africa.
In 2005, the Icsid Secretariat left Europe for the first time in its history, settling in Montreal in May of that year. The move followed an extensive bid process, in which over 30 cities made an application to become the host country of the organization. Still today, Icsid receives international recognition for its work and generates support on a global scale.
taken directly from Icsid's site
Members
ICSID Members are professional associations, promotional societies, educational institutions, government bodies, corporations and institutions, which aim to contribute to the development of the profession of industrial design. These societies collaborate to establish an international platform through which design institutions worldwide can stay in touch, share common interests and new experiences, and be heard as a powerful voice.
External links
Icsid website
Verband Deutscher Industrie Designer e.V.
Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA)