Milica Božić’s research-driven practice focuses on curation and exhibitions about architecture, shaped by her cross-cultural experience across Australia, Italy and Serbia. Named in Australian Design Review’s 30UNDER30 for 2025/2026, she brings a critical approach to heritage and its representation.

Australian Design Review: Why did you enter the 30UNDER30 program? 

Milica Božić: I entered the 30UNDER30 program because I’m curious about the young people shaping Australia’s design scene right now. It feels like a space where connections can move beyond networking and become real collaborations, friendships and shared momentum. I’m genuinely excited to contribute to and learn from this community.

What do you hope to get out of the program? 

I’m hoping for long-term creative alliances and mentors who challenge my thinking. I’m interested in building a strong, evolving community of practice and friends.

What most excites you about the Bali retreat? 

The intensity of it. Being immersed, slightly out of context and fully present. I’m excited by the idea of stepping away from routine and entering a shared space for creative exchange.

What do you think are the benefits of mingling with professionals from different disciplines – architects with interior designers with product designers etc? 

I think the most urgent and interesting work happens at the intersections of these fields – architecture, interiors, product design and beyond. Different fields bring different sensitivities, and that friction often creates space for unexpected ideas.

What do you think you personally are able to bring to the program? 

A cross-cultural perspective shaped by Australia, Italy and Serbia, and a research-driven practice that moves between heritage, contemporary architecture and curation. I’d like to think I bring a sense of criticality, openness, and a genuine interest in dialogue and co-creation.

What do you think are the most pressing challenges for designers coming up to 2030? 

The tightening of intellectual, political and geographic freedoms globally shapes who has access to creative spaces and whose stories are heard. This is highly concerning to me. I think designers need to keep actively creating space for critical voices more than ever.

What most excites you about the opportunities in the industry currently? 

An incredible density of festivals and cross-disciplinary platforms connecting architecture, design and visual arts. That hybrid territory is most exciting to me, and where I feel most at home.

Do you remember your first encounter with design? 

I was five years old, making a small pottery piece for my mum in kindergarten. That feeling of designing something with my hands for someone I love stayed with me, and I carry it into my work today. 

How would you describe your work? 

My work is research-driven, experimental, intentionally open-ended and oriented towards creating meaningful encounters. 

What has been a highlight in your career so far?

Producing an event for the MPavilion Season 11 was such a formative experience. It allowed me to connect my research with the public by creating a meaningful encounter. Also, working closely with my PhD supervisors, Suzie Attiwill, Annunziata Maria Oteri and Maria Cristina Giambruno, has been transformative in helping me find my voice.

If you could work with any designer, artist or other creative – living or dead – who would it be and why? 

I would love to collaborate with Boris Acket and Jonathan Bree, ideally together. I’m drawn to artists whose work is immersive and atmospheric across fields. 

What do you enjoy doing in your spare time? 

My favourite activities are yoga and aperitivi with friends.

What do you do to kickstart your creativity when you’re in a rut? 

Ideally, travel. Distance gives new energy, making space for new perspectives to emerge.  

What guiding values drive you and what kind of impact do you hope to make through your work? 

I’m interested in the experimental exploration of the multi-heritage environments we live in. It’s important to me that my work takes a critical position – socially, politically and culturally – and influences how we relate to heritage and to one another. I question what Laurajane Smith calls the “authorised heritage discourse” seeing heritage instead as collectively shaped and continuously reinterpreted. Beyond that, I hope my work invites empathy, compassion and coexistence.

What’s the movie that you’ve watched most often? 

Before Sunrise. It’s become an annual ritual. It always reminds me that meaningful connections happen serendipitously and unexpectedly.

What would be the opening song to your biopic?

Definitely ‘Ride’ by Lana Del Rey.

Australian Design Review’s 30UNDER30 is brought to you by major sponsor Neolith, alongside partners Designer Rugs, Laufen, Krost, Miele, Signature Appliances powered by Miele and Tongue & Groove.

Australian Design Review is also grateful to our 30UNDER30 practice partners AJC Architects, BVN, Cera Stribley, COX Architecture, Genton, GroupGSA, HDR, Richards Stanisich, RIZEN Atelier, Rob Mills Architects, Rothelowman, SJB and Design by WBL for helping us foster the future of Australian design.

Learn more about ADR’s 30UNDER30 here.