Graphic Stories Cyprus 7th Conference on Graphic Design and Visual Communication

The 7th Conference on Graphic Design and Visual Communication, Graphic Stories Cyprus, will take place from 21-23 of May 2021.

Graphic Stories Cyprus is the only established, independent, annual conference in the field of visual communication and applied arts, graphic design, illustration, typography, semiotics, animation, photography, multimedia, internet, and web design, calligraphy, branding, and design in general. It opens its gates to welcome the community of all creatives of Cyprus and beyond.

The difficult period of the pandemic may continue, but we “Break Down the Walls” and hold the established annual celebration of visual communication and Design. The Conference will be held live, while there will also be live streaming for online attendance of the lectures via Zoom. In case of change of the precaution measures by the ministry of health, all actions [lectures & workshops] will be carried out online.

The 7th Graphic Stories Cyprus includes six [6] lectures, five [5] creative workshops, [1] one internationally acclaimed film screening, [1] one international poster exhibition featuring designers from Cyprus and abroad, and two [2] award ceremonies. The Conference on Graphic Design and Visual Communication in Cyprus, Graphic Stories Cyprus, has been selected as one of Europe’s best festivals by the European Festivals Association (EFA) and has been awarded the European Quality Stamp EFFE Label for the period 2019-2021.

Target Audience

The Conference is addressed to all creatives in the field of visual communication, applied and visual arts, professionals, students, graphic designers, web designers, UX / UI designers, illustrators, photographers, animators, 2D / 3D designers, printmakers, creative agencies, advertisers, marketers, their associates as well as those who are interested in knowing the profession of visual communication designer.

Program

Lectures
Friday 21 May 2021
Starting time: 15:00

[live & online]
  • Mauro Pastore: The Creative Director of Cacao Design based in Milan, hosted in collaboration with the Cyprus Creative Club, will speak with a Gestalt mood about the secrets of great design.
  • Evangelos Kassavetis: The award-winning designer with 30 years of creative career will talk about visual communication, typography with emphasis on the social and historical dimension of Design.
  • Charalambos Kontopanagos: Director, communication specialist, and with many years of successful presence in the field of advertising will present his award-winning short film, “Invoice”, with a Graphic Designer in the starring role! which will be shown to the public.
  • Lefteris Kokkinakis: 3D Animation. England, Greece, France, Cyprus, with a creative journey of many years, Lefteris will introduce the public to the secrets of 3D Animation.
  • Elena Jnr. Andreou: Pioneer in digital marketing and CEO of Go Digital Globally, Elena will talk about the value and methodology of personal branding, “You Are Your Brand: The Solopreneur’s Personal Branding Blueprint”.
  • Aggeliki Athanasiadi: The founder and Creative Director of Graphic Stories Cyprus will talk about “Branding & Rebranding, from Local to Global” and will present the new logo of Graphic Stories and the visual identity of the 8th International Conference.
  • Pygmalion Awards 2019-2020, by the Cyprus Creative Club.

Inauguration of the 5th International Poster Exhibition

21 May 2021
Title: “Break Down the Walls”
Starting time: 20:00

Award ceremony for the first 4 winners, one in each category of the 5th Graphic Stories Cyprus International Poster contest & exhibition of the 50 distinguished posters. The contest was attended by 856 designers from 49 countries, a record number for the event, which makes the contest a global benchmark for visual communication.

The posters that were created highlight the fact that human freedom is not a given and show that in order to conquer freedom we must fight and break down the walls that are rising around us. Break the barriers, raise your voice, break down the walls!

The number of allowed visitors will be based on the current precaution measures.

Workshops: 22 & 23 May 2021

  • P.N.D. [Engraving] by Ioannis Fetanis. An introduction to the art of engraving. Familiarity with the behaviour of materials such as ink and linoleum, handling the necessary tools such as scalpel with the goal of printing the created artworks.
  • Copperplate calligraphy by Marina Pavlova. Theory and practice in relation to the secrets and techniques of calligraphy.
  • Introduction to 3D Animation by Lefteris Kokkinakis. Techniques and guidance for creating a complete short 3D Animation.
  • “The 7 Pieces of the Puzzle that Make or Break your Business”, a professional workshop by Elena Jnr. Andreou.
  • Children’s Animation Workshop with the theme “Break Down the Walls!” by Panagiota Michael.

All the activities of the conference will take place at the Aigaia School of Art & Design, Ag. Omologiton 81, Nicosia 1080

Important clarifications

For the lectures, there is the option of attending live in person for a maximum of 50 people. The lectures will also be live-streamed via Zoom.

The workshops will be held live unless the precaution measures change whereat, they will be held online via Zoom.

All measures will be strictly observed based on the decisions of the Ministry of Health. Ticket reservations are made in exclusive partnership with Tickethour.

www.graphicstoriescyprus.com/el/tickets

The Conference on Graphic Design and Visual Communication, Graphic Stories Cyprus, aims for the cultivation of artistic education and the development of critical perception about modern graphic arts both on local and on an international level. At the same time contributes to the promotion and the exposure of the Cyprus visual communication and creation not only in Cyprus but also abroad and encourages the networking with cultural institutions, organizations, and contemporary art groups abroad.

The organization of exhibitions, conferences, and workshops aims to show and promote the value of visual communication to the public, creating culture and values and its interaction with what is happening in society.

Hosting venue
Aigaia School of Art & Design

In cooperation with the Bank of Cyprus

Official sponsors
University of Nicosia, Frederick University, Parachute Typefoundry

Media Sponsors
Politis Newspaper, Politis Radio 107.6FM, Cyprus Radio Foundation RIK

With the support of
Cultural Services of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports & Youth

Supporters
Alexander College, Cyprus Computer Society, The Cyprus Creative Club, MASS Supermarkets

Under the auspices
of the Municipality of Nicosia

More information: www.graphicstoriescyprus.com

Maria Papaefstathiou

VISUAL DESIGNER since 1996 and blogger since 2010. Living in Athens, Greece. She has been focusing her research on poster design and particularly on social poster design and portrait design. Her main poster project is a series of posters celebrating great personalities of traditional and popular culture in Greece and Jamaica. These include actors, singers, musicians, poets etc. This is an ongoing project. “I believe that design is a powerful tool that we designers can use to spark enthusiasm, change mindsets and bring positive actions to our world and our culture”. FOUNDER AND EDITOR OF GRAPHICART-NEWS.COM BLOG. She carefully curates high-quality designs, illustrations, and art, from all over the world that will teach and provoke other designers. Many consider her blog to be an exceptional educational tool. CO-FOUNDER OF THE INTERNATIONAL REGGAE POSTER CONTEST which was launched on December 2011, partnering, the creative activist Michael Thompson aka Freestylee. (www.reggaepostercontest.com)