Designing national history: the mission of the Institute is to preserve the history and culture of design in Israel from the onset of the Jewish settlement in 1882 to the present day.

The institute collects, documents, processes, categorizes, researches and dates a variety of design pieces. Any information obtained about every designer and every work of design is saved and catalogued with all the relevant details. As a result, the Institute is in possession of papers and articles pertaining to designers and their work, as well as the entirety of worldviews prevalent in the world of design during various periods.

A sense of urgency led the institute to prioritize documentation of work by senior designers, with the objective of hearing directly from them - while still possible - about their creative process and manner of design and thus prevent works of historical value from being lost.

'Lahan Amammi' exhibition (Photo by: Achikam Ben Yosef)

To date, the institute has documented tens of thousands of pieces and counting, primarily in the area of graphic and industrial design.

The Institute's website allows searching for pieces based on various categories (year, subject, event, etc.) and obtaining information about the designers behind the pieces, as well as watching summaries of video interviews with prominent designers. The Institute's work has grown more sophisticated over time, along with its digital activity, with the intention of becoming a national and historical center of information on the history of Israeli design.

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