Dora Derado Giljanovic - Curator & Art Manager.
- Isobel Arden
- Mar 14
- 5 min read
Updated: Mar 23
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Meet Dora Derado Giljanovic.
Founder of DLightful, full-service art curation, management & design.
Dora Derado Giljanovic isn’t your run-of-the-mill art historian. No, she’s the type to roll up her sleeves, dive headfirst into the tangled web of contemporary art, and come out with a PhD in Art History and a mind that never stops dissecting, curating, and questioning. She’s made it her mission to bring art down from its ivory tower and plant it firmly in people’s everyday lives.
In the interview, Mark created Dora's fantasy cultural year. Expect surprises, anecdotes, laughs and conversational detours in the video above or the audio version below.
Her journey into the art world started in the sun-drenched city of Split, where she studied Art History and English Language and Literature at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences.
This is where she first began unpicking the enigma of what makes art, well, art. Her Master’s thesis, "How Artistic is Prehistoric Artistry?" wasn’t just an academic exercise—it was an intellectual adventure, pitting ancient artifacts against centuries of art theory to determine where creativity meets intention.
But Dora doesn’t just think about art—she makes things happen. After a stint as an Art History professor, she transitioned into research, throwing herself into the "Crosculpture" project, an ambitious study mapping the manifestations of modern sculpture in Croatia. When she wasn’t buried in archival research, she was out there curating exhibitions, writing, designing, and ensuring that contemporary artists got the recognition they deserved.
Then came DLightful Services, Dora’s brainchild and a full-service hub for artists, galleries, and cultural institutions in need of a guiding hand. Whether it’s exhibition curation, digital marketing, web design, or just figuring out how to get an artist’s work seen in the saturated art market, she’s the go-to person. Think of her as an art-world Swiss Army knife—versatile, effective, and always ready to tackle a creative challenge.
Her work isn’t just about making things look pretty (though she’s got a sharp eye for design). It’s about communication—helping artists articulate their vision, translating complex ideas into accessible narratives, and making contemporary art less intimidating. From public speaking engagements to scholarly research, she’s on a mission to bridge the gap between art and its audience.
Beyond running DLightful Services, she’s been a freelance translator, research assistant, project manager, and curator—all roles that add to her ever-expanding skillset. A member of both HULU Split and AICA Croatia, she’s firmly embedded in the art scene, constantly pushing the conversation forward.
If you need someone who can take your artistic ambitions and turn them into reality, Dora is the person you call. She’s not just an art historian; she’s an art advocate, strategist, and creative powerhouse, determined to make the world a little more artful—one project at a time.
A Fantasy Cultural Year: Dora's Dream Artistic Journey
In the interview above Mark created Dora's Fantasy Cultural Year from the answers to a few simple questions. There are no wrong answers ;-)
Dora’s journey of cultural discovery began with a lively discussion about her favourite building—the Hundertwasserhaus in Vienna. She pictured herself at a pavement café nearby, sipping an Aquiato macchiato and engrossed in Art as Therapy by Alain de Botton and John Armstrong.
Their conversation was filled with humour, anecdotes, and playful challenges, as Mark devised a fantasy cultural year inspired by Dora’s responses to easy questions.
Her adventure unfolded when a prestigious Viennese arts foundation invited her to embark on a year-long global research project exploring the intersection of art and therapy. The catch? She would need to travel with her 16-month-old child and a full-time nanny. Dora embraced the opportunity, albeit with a flexible timeline to accommodate her little one’s needs.
With her itinerary set, Dora arrived in London, where trainee art therapists welcomed her to a beautiful riverside loft apartment. The foundation offered her an evening of cultural indulgence—a dance performance and dinner—but Dora opted for a concert instead.
Her travels took her across continents, with a carefully curated cultural programme:
A Flamenco performance by Sarah Barras, followed by a vibrant Mexican feast.
A trip to New Orleans to experience live ice-skating and step into the world of early Kandinsky.
A week on the Croatian island of Brač, immersing herself in a historic concert, theatre play, musical, opera, and film screening.
A deep dive into theatre and opera, where she proposed Aquarius and The Master and Margarita, discovering that the latter had already been adapted for the stage. Mark introduced her to The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp, a film she hadn’t seen but agreed to watch.
As their conversations unfolded, Mark presented Dora with a hypothetical challenge: a year-long global mission to interview people about art therapy. This sparked ideas of TED Talks, book deals, and even a TV series chronicling her journey. When asked whom she’d invite for a leisurely lunch, Dora chose Alain de Botton but hesitated over his historical guest choice—eventually landing on Jung.
To round off their imaginative exchange, Mark quizzed Dora in the This or That game. Her instinctive choices included sparkling water over still, radio over TV, dark chocolate over milk, comedy over drama, and reggae over rock. She saw herself as an early riser, a fan of spicy food, and someone who preferred seeing the future over reliving the past.
Dora’s fantasy year of cultural exploration blended intellectual curiosity, artistic indulgence, and playful spontaneity—an adventure shaped by her passion for art, storytelling, and human connection.
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Mark Walmsley FRSA FCIM AGSM
Chief Culture Vulture
Arts & Culture Network
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