This new event will have more than 20 national and international speakers.
Graphispag is committed to design and image, with the addition of Grada&CongrésGràfic
From 26 to 29 March, the benchmark fair for the graphic and visual communication industries, Graphispag, teams up with Grada&CongrésGràfic, a new event that brings together knowledge from disciplines in which the image is their form of expression, and with the participation of more than twenty experts in design, infographics, illustration, concept art or typography, among others. Julius Wiedermann, editor of Taschen; Félix Beltrán, designer of the iconic Che Guevara image; or Fernando Baptista, graphic designer at National Geographic, are some of the speakers that have already been confirmed.
Grada&CongrésGràfic, organised by the Official College of Graphic Design of Catalonia and Fira de Barcelona, is the backbone of specialities where images are both the motor and vehicle of expression: from visual communication and graphic design, to architecture and engineering, all the way through to fine arts, urban sketching, illustration, packaging or textile design, among others.
For four days at Grada&CongrésGràfic, conferences, workshops, masterclasses and networking sessions will be held in a programme of activities where image and society, visual editing and communication, and the relationship between art, culture and technology, as well as emerging talent will be the core themes. Similarly, Grada will have its own exhibition area, where around 30 companies will take part with products and services designed for professionals who work in the graphic design, visual communication and image-related sectors.
In this way, the new event complements Graphispag’s offer, organised by Fira de Barcelona in collaboration with Graphispack Association, bringing together the latest technology, printing and finishing equipment, materials, software and inks to create innovative printed products for all types of industries. More than 200 direct exhibitors are expected to occupy 9,000 m2 of Hall 2 of the Gran Via venue. The emblematic graphic fair will feature different experiential areas, demonstrations, innovation spaces and conferences based on the communicative and creative possibilities of printing and visual communication.
The bridge between creation and production
Grada&CongrésGràfic, an event that aims to achieve continuity, will form part of this year’s programme of activities organised by Graphispag 2019, with the aim of offering personalised content to designers and other groups that use images in their creative processes. In this regard, the attendance of professionals from the world of design is expected to increase significantly; this is a group which accounted for 17% of the total number of visitors to Graphispag last year.
According to Jordi Magre, the Director of Graphispag 2019, “With Grada&CongrésGràfic we add synergies to bring together two inter-related worlds: design and printing. On the one hand, we concentrate and generate current knowledge of different creative disciplines and, on the other, we showcase solutions, materials and printing technologies to facilitate the materialisation of the projects carried out by designers and other visual communication professionals who are daily influencers and users of graphic products”.
Jesús Del Hoyo, President of the Official Graphic Design Association of Catalonia, expresses his appreciation for Graphispag’s firm commitment to design and is convinced that the contents of Grada&CongrésGràfic will be key to attracting professionals linked to image-based creation: “We want to bring together all the players who use images as a tool in their work, based on a content-rich programme of talks, workshops and spaces that will help them to innovate and develop new ideas in their daily activity”, declares Del Hoyo.
Conferences, masterclasses and workshops
Grada&CongrésGràfic‘s programme of talks, master classes and workshops will be given by more than twenty domestic and international experts, including visual artists, graphic designers and specialists in geo-information tools, SketchUp, image technologies, urban sketching, scientific illustration and calligraphy.
The following names stand out among the speakers; the head of graphic design at National Geographic and one of the world’s best graphic designers, Fernando Baptista, who will talk about the art of telling stories in a visual way. Félix Beltrán is also noteworthy, considered the father of Cuban posters and a benchmark for graphic design in Latin America; the Mexican graphic designer and expert in new technologies, Teresa Camacho; and the influential Slovenian illustrator, Martina Paukova who collaborates with Google, Converse and The New York Times.
Other disciplines that use and reproduce images in their creative processes will also be represented at Grada&CongrésGràfic by experts such as the architect Benedetta Tagliabue; the chief editor of Taschen, Julius Wiedermann; the illustrator and urban sketcher (live urban life artist), Gabriel Campanario; and the multidisciplinary artist, Judas Arrieta.
We will also analyse the state of the design industry with the founder of the communication studio Vasava, Toni Sellés, and the Catalan designer based in Amsterdam, Marta Cerdá. The psychological approach to the persuasive power of images will be provided by the neurolinguist Víctor Amat, while the designer Joan Anchon will deliver a workshop on Motion graphics.
There will also be an area for typography and calligraphy with the designers Ricardo Rousselot, Octavio Pardo and Pablo Mariné; journalism Infographics with the head of this department at La Vanguardia newspaper, Jaime Sierra; scientific illustration with Carles Puche and Blanca Martí; and the decorative arts with the designer specialising in corporate visual identity, Javier González Solas, among other specialities and speakers.
Recognition of emerging talent
Grada&CongrésGràfic will also dedicate a space to the future professionals of the design industry with the exhibition of selected works and the award ceremony of the second edition of the Gaudeamus Projecta Awards, with an overall monetary award of close to 50,000 euros, in which final degree projects in graphic design are presented by students from art education centres and Spanish faculties that offer this degree.
Barcelona, 31 January 2019