DAFES is a digital platform that facilitates meaningful exchange among professionals, universities, cultural institutions, associations, and brands within the creative industries. Founded on principles of openness, transparency, and accessibility, it is grounded in research and analysis of the sector’s current state and is focused on developing digital tools that provide long-term, effective support for emerging creative professionals.
As an aggregator of active and forward-thinking participants — from industry leaders and communities to academic institutions and professional associations — DAFES enables its members to organize specialized contests and awards, create and share educational programs, and support the growth of student-led startups. Together, these efforts help shape shared quality standards in areas such as creative education and competition design, across both local and global markets.
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Professional resources DAFES
Design: deziiign.com
Art: art.media
Fashion: fashion.deziiign
Education: education.mediiia
Start-ups: brnd.ru
DAFES AWARDS is an international contest program that recognizes creative achievements, facilitates the exchange of experience, and helps shape professional development benchmarks. We serve as an aggregator of key players in the creative industries — organizers of prestigious festivals, awards, exhibitions, and workshops. DAFES highlights outstanding achievements in both student and professional projects across 5 professional profiles, 20 categories, and more than 80 award nominations — including collaborative initiatives with leading design schools and cultural institutions.
DAFES AWARDS page
profiles
categories
nominations
global creative integration
DAFES+ extends the proven digital platforms of HSE Art and Design School to universities and creative institutions worldwide. It offers an all-in-one solution including a project portfolio system, an educational LMS, and a customizable platform to host international art and design competitions. By partnering with DAFES+, institutions gain cutting-edge tools to foster collaboration, showcase talent, and run impactful contests that help students build skills, strengthen portfolios, and unlock new creative opportunities.
the art directors club of russia
The ADCR Awards is a leading Russian professional competition recognizing excellence in creative design and advertising. Founded by the Russian Art Directors Club in 2004, the awards aim to support advertising agencies and independent creators active in the Russian market. By honoring outstanding achievements, the ADCR Awards strengthens the growth of the advertising, creative design, and marketing industries across Russia, fostering innovation and professional development within the local creative community.
adcr.dafes.net platform
The Coordinating Council of DAFES brings together leading figures from the global art community and experts from top universities to evaluate contestants’ projects across all DAFES focus areas. Selected works are published in specialized galleries: Design, Art, Fashion, Education, and Startups.
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education
developing educational standards
DAFES partners with universities and educational institutions to develop innovative approaches to art and design education. Building on these partnerships, we aim to facilitate the sharing and exchange of modern, project-focused bachelor’s, master’s, and continuing education programs across the creative industries, while also promoting digital university mobility. By providing an inclusive space, DAFES offers students, professionals, and creative industry enthusiasts access to a wide range of courses and platforms across various specializations and skill levels.
learn more about the dafes educational program
startups
supporting creative entrepreneurship
We support talented artists and designers in bringing their products to market by providing technological, marketing, and PR assistance. Our incubator and accelerator programs offer mentorship, training, and resources essential for the successful launch and growth of startups in object design, fashion, design services, and the art gallery sector.
technological platform
DAFES is powered by the mediiia.com.
Mediiia.com enables easy creation of digital platforms to share experiences across creative fields and connect professional communities. It also supports launching and managing training courses. We use mediiia.com to provide technological support to everyone interested.
Currently, the following resources are available on mediiia.com: deziiign, artz.work, fashion.deziiign, brnd / startup incubator, gallllery, gallllery.art, creativecity and more.
mediiia.com platform
Partners
