2nd stage of Armenian-Swiss joint project
Basel School of Design, Switzerland, has recently hosted the delegation of Armenian students from Computer graphics department headed by lecturers Nara Mendelyan and Katerina Khachatryan. Our students jointly with the MA level students of visual communication department of Basel school continued the project launched earlier in Armenia this time creating posters on the theme Basel-Yerevan.
During a week-long visit, the students of SAFAA formed eight working groups jointly with Swiss students, managed to explore the architecture of Basel city, its history, cultural heritage as well as the rich history of Swiss posters, further they introduced the impressions and obtained knowledge in the form of posters.
Throughout the project implementation, the students visited a series of historical-cultural places (Basel Museum of Art, Museum of Vitra Design, Basel Cathedral, etc.) and participated in the master classes of designer Leander Eisenman and another renowned designer Verner Yeker. These classes enabled students to rediscover the rich history of Swiss posters, their techniques (silkscreen printing, xylography, digital printing, etc.) to differentiate the Armenian and Swiss posters, their similarities and differences. A major role must be attached to the hosts, the students and academic staff of Basel school of Design whose warm and sincere reception accompanied by daily joint lunches and dinners helped to the better self-expression, introduction in such a short period of time.
The programme was summarized in the form of an exhibition held at the exhibition hall of Basel school of Design that showcased the posters made both in Armenia and Switzerland. It should be mentioned that the fact about the Swiss students belonging to different cultures (Sweden, USA, Italy, France, India, Ghana, etc.) this time as well was reflected in jointly prepared posters that combined not only interesting ideas and good quality of exploitation but also the influence of Swiss style and the application of the knowledge gained at master classes.
In his welcoming speech the Rector of Basel School of Design, Michael Reyner noted that the project itself differed from previous ones in a sense that Armenia was not the country they themselves or their students had ever visited or been well informed about. Speaking about the role of design and art in the modern world, the Rector outlined that those broke all the barriers and made an interesting link that was reflected also through typography, as judging from the impressive posters introduced in the exhibition.
As a final note, Mr. Reyner extended his gratitude to the organisers who actualized this project. His special thanks were to lecturers Nara Mendelyan, Narine Grigoryan and Katerina Khachatryan form Armenian delegation as well as to Mischa Leyner from Swiss side.
The latter spoke so by quoting the famous designer Wolfgang Weingart: “Design ends when it comes to printing devices”. Mischa Leyner mentioned that the students were so absorbed in the working process and were so eager to improve the final result that they delayed the printing process to the very last moment. “It was pleasant not only to have such outcomes and the working process but also all those funny moments that we shared during the week”.
SAFAA lecturer Nara Mendelyan expressed her gratitude on behalf of university management, students and staff. She noted that she was very proud of her students and their original posters they made together with their fellow students from Basel School in such a short period of time. Ms. Mendelyan also mentioned that besides the wonderful outcomes of the project, another important achievement she considered the opportunity that students also made very good friends in Switzerland. Summing up her speech she stated that they learnt a lot from their Swiss colleagues and hoped that the latter also gained something form the Armenian side.
Arman Harutyunyan
Project participants
| Coordinators | |
| Soghakat Mlke-Galstyan | |
| Narine Grigoryan | Basel School of Design |
| Mkrtich Ayvazyan | State Academy of Fine Arts of Armenia |
| Michael Reyner | Basel School of Design |
| Lecturers | |
| Mischa Leyner | Basel School of Design |
| Nara Mendelyan | State Academy of Fine Arts of Armenia |
| Katerina Khachatryan | State Academy of Fine Arts of Armenia |
| Students | |
| Evelina Hallen | Basel School of Design |
| Lara Haddadin | Basel School of Design |
| Zubin Lackra | Basel School of Design |
| Jingyu Lee | Basel School of Design |
| Sabina Laner | Basel School of Design |
| Fanie Demier | Basel School of Design |
| Kwaku “Rees” Opoku | Basel School of Design |
| Anahat Kaur | Basel School of Design |
| Simon Mari | Basel School of Design |
| Obri Alfonso Paul | Basel School of Design |
| Arman Harutyunyan | SAFAA, Computer Graphics, 3rd year |
| Hakob Melkonyan | SAFAA, Computer Graphics 4th year |
| Albert Baghdasaryan | SAFAA, Computer Graphics 4th year |
| Siranush Zurabyan | SAFAA, Computer Graphics 4th year |
| Lusine Saghatelyan | SAFAA, Computer Graphics 4th year |
| Gevorg Ordakyan | SAFAA, Computer Graphics 4th year |
| Inesa Poghosyan | SAFAA, Computer Graphics 4th year |
| Gayane Ayvazyan | SAFAA, Computer Graphics 4th year |
