AGI Open 2024

From October 3rd to October 4th, the AGI Open welcomed attendees to spend two inspiring days in Basel. The AGI Open is an international design conference that brings together designers from the Alliance Graphique Internationale. This year, it was held in Basel, Switzerland, the hometown of two founding members of the Alliance Graphique Internationale. This connection greatly enhanced the spirit of design over these two days. Founded in 1951 by two Basel-based designers, Fritz Bühler and Donald Brun, along with three French colleagues—Jean Picard Le Douc, Jean Colin, and Jacques Nathan Garamond—AGI’s mission is to promote graphic design through talks, publications, and educational activities. Currently, AGI has 534 members from 47 countries. Many influential figures in the history of graphic design are or have been members, including Saul Bass, A.M. Cassandre, Wim Crouwel, April Greiman, F.H.K. Henrion, Armin Hofmann, Josef Müller-Brockmann, Paul Rand, Paula Scher, and Massimo Vignelli, among others, as well as outstanding contemporary practitioners.

Since 2010, under the presidency of Paula Scher, the members decided to share their knowledge and expertise with the world, leading to the creation of AGI Open. Each year, members of the Alliance Graphique Internationale gather in a different city for the AGI Congress, where they meet in a spirit of friendship, eager to learn about each other’s activities, discuss the profession, and explore their host city. These conferences, focused on both industry professionals and students, have been held in Porto, Barcelona, Paris, Seoul, Biel/Bienne, São Paulo, London, Hong Kong, Mexico City, Rotterdam, Trieste, and Auckland. Central to the success of AGI Open is the active participation of members in talks and events that extend knowledge and inspire generations of students and designers in attendance, some of whom may become members in the future.

This year, attendees had the honor of being warmly welcomed by Paula Scher in the marvelous Stadtcasino Basel, which added a special touch to the design conference. Later in the day, Thorsten Kemper from Herzog & de Meuron provided an exciting insight into the renovation and restoration of the building, allowing it to regain its esteemed charm.

The first day started off with the Perspective of Practice, where Liza Enebeis took us into the world of motion design that Studio Dumbar from the Netherlands is bringing to the global stage. Studio Dumbar is an award-winning international agency of Dutch heritage that specializes in visual branding and motion design. She shared interesting insights into their visuals for Exterion Media, an international outdoor advertising company that commissioned Studio Dumbar to create motion graphics for railway station platform screens across the Netherlands. Enebeis provided insights on the process and the flexible, creative concept for mainline railway stations in cities like Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and many more.

Another highlight was April Greiman’s presentation, followed by a discussion where she answered questions from the audience. She offered a personal reflection on what it was like to start her career as a woman in a male-dominated industry and discussed the fine line between design and art. It was also fascinating to revisit the early days of digital design through her experiences.

In contrast to the impressive presentations by the masters of design, the contributions from young talents provided students and recent graduates from Swiss design schools with the opportunity to showcase their work in front of an international audience of experts and to establish initial connections on both days. This created a wonderful opportunity to promote exchange between the young and the experienced, enriching the experience for everyone involved.

The first day flew by, with one presentation after another, each filling us with fresh insights. For those still eager to continue, an evening program followed at various locations, including a tape performance by Niklaus Troxler at the Stadtkino Basel, accompanied by Korean jazz singer Song Yi Jeon.

The next day focused on perspectives in education and technology. Attendees gained valuable insights into alternative approaches to education and how to share knowledge fairly without stifling creativity. A great example of cross-generational collaboration followed immediately after, as Vera van de Seyp took the stage after Zach Liebermann in the Perspectives of Technology segment. Van de Seyp is a recent graduate from the MIT Media Lab, where Liebermann teaches. Despite nearly two days of packed programming, Liebermann delivered a presentation that truly engaged the audience, immersing them in his unique augmented reality world. He offered fascinating insights into his latest projects, discussing how he uses AR to create confusing memories, and his examples had the crowd chuckling. Afterwards, Vera van de Seyp  addressed the question of how AI can assist designers, concluding with the statement that designers should be less fearful of AI but remain critical.

Another highlight of the day was the performance by the two AGI members André Baldinger and Toan Vu-Huu from baldinger•vu-huu, a Swiss-German graphic and typographic design studio founded in 2008. It was a blast to watch as they presented their corporate identity and the Dina Chaumont typeface for the French city of Chaumont, the City of Graphic Design, in an old-fashioned way using posters and wearing RGB overalls.

After more exciting presentations, the AGI Open concluded with a lively party night at the Campus of the Arts Basel, where the love for design was celebrated. We experienced two days filled with inspiration and networking and are very grateful to have participated in AGI Open 2024. The exchange of ideas and connections made during this event are among the greatest gifts, and we are glad to have been a part of it. Here’s to many more years of AGI!

Images: © zvg IDCE HGK Basel FHNW, © Greta Landmann