The Irish Society of Performance Designers, previously known as ISSSD, was instigated by Irish Theatre Institute (ITI) following their leadership on presenting Ireland at the Prague Quadrennial (PQ), one of the most prestigious exhibitions of design for performance in the world. Ireland PQ 2007, produced by ITI, presented Irish design within this platform for the first time. In 2016, after the Irish Year of Design 2015, ITI initiated a meeting of designers who might set up an organisation to represent the interests of designers in Ireland and who could regularly organise an Irish presence at PQ. The Irish Society of Stage and Screen designers (ISSSD) was born.
The Society strives to be the principal representative body of designers in Ireland, to be a professional development resource, and to organise exhibitions nationally and internationally. Since its foundation, we have presented conferences for designers, exhibitions at Prague Quadrennial 2019 and 2023, and a number of professional development initiatives including the STAGE LEFT podcasts, and SkĒNOGRAPHIA masterclasses 2021-2023.
In 2022 it was decided by democratic vote among ISPD’s membership to change the name of the society to Irish Society of Performance Designers, to reflect better the nature of our membership while encompassing and representing all the professions within scenography. Performance Designers living and working in Ireland have consistently voiced the need for support from an organisation dedicated to their interests. ISPD offers that support.
Set design by Francis O’ Connor
Chair: Molly O’Cathain
Vice Chair: Francis O’Connor
Secretary: LaurA Fajardo
Treasurer: Zia Bergin-Holly
Education Officer: Ciara Murnane
General Committee: Valentina Gambardella, Ronan O’Shea, Denis Clohessy. Chrysi Chatzivasileiou, Sinéad O’Donnell-Carey, Suzie Cummins, Eimer Murphy,
Associate Producer: Freya Gillespie
Communications Manager: Cúan Cusack
