The finalists of the 21st edition of the Junceda Awards, a renowned prize in the field of illustration, were announced very recently and we have some spectacular news to share with you. Michele Slafani, a LABASAD student, is a nominee in the scientific category, Martín Tognola and Olga Capdevila, teachers of the Master Online en Ilustración Editorial y Publicitaria, have received nominations in the animation category and Helena Sbeghen, teacher of the Online Master in Editorial and Advertising Illustration, is a finalist in the book cover category.
Michele’s illustration was made for the cover of the scientific magazine “Chem Catalysis”, a magazine specialising in chemical catalysis experiments and aimed at an audience of scientific experts. The idea of the project was to move away from the usual didactic representation in this type of magazine and create an image that would be interesting for both the scientific community and the general public.
This cover depicts the main result of a computational chemistry study: the inhibitory action of the drug remdesivir on the cell replication process of the coronavirus.
“My intention with this image is to invite all readers, both experts in the field and those who are not familiar with the science, to discover the key result of the article, knowing that their understanding will vary according to the level of knowledge of each reader”.
‘Porta Oberta’ is an experimental project by Olga Capdevila and Alba Prado. It is an animation that accompanies the first single from the album ‘Font Gelada’ by the composer Ernest Crusats. It is an experimental project carried out in stop-motion, painted with oil paint on glass plates and acetate sheets.
This project seeks to recover more traditional animation techniques, using analogue resources that are converted into an audiovisual piece.
The final video was made from small short GIFs that together make up the piece. The story is based on a visit, from one person to another, who have not seen each other for a long time. The challenge was not to put humans, but to tell this story through landscapes, objects and interiors of a house.
On the other hand, another of the nominees in the animation category is Martín Tognola, professor of the Animated Press subject, within the Online Master Online en Ilustración Editorial y Publicitaria.
Martín is nominated for “Baúl de bulos”, a weekly column published in La Vanguardia, written by the Irishman John Wilkinson, where Martín makes the animated GIFs. These articles revolve around lies and deception based on historical facts, news, politics, economics, etc.
“Being a finalist in the Junceda awards is a great joy and an important recognition from people in the sector, colleagues and great professionals”
GIF by Martin Tognoloa for La Vanguardia.
In the Book Cover category, Helena Sbeghen created a dust jacket for the cover of a reprint of Oliver Twist, a classic by Charles Dickens. The book was published in 2022 by Editorial Panda Books (Brazil) and is part of a collection of literary classics, with graphic design by Casa Rex studio (Brazil).
“I am very happy to be a finalist for a prize in Catalonia. I’m Brazilian, I’ve been living and working in Barcelona for six years and I’ve never been nominated for an award before. Being a finalist alongside so many other brilliant artists makes me feel that all my professional work was worth it”.
The dust jacket, printed double-sided, was designed to have a fold that creates different patterns. At first, these patterns appear abstract, and gradually, as the fold is unravelled, two images emerge representing parts of the story.
Both illustrations have elements that refer to life in London in the 17th century. Helena looked for inspiration in the patterns of William Morris, an English artist (as well as Dickens) who developed his work at a time quite close to the year the book was published.
Congratulations again to all the finalists of the Junceda Awards, best of luck in the voting and final decision.
If you want to know more about LABASAD’s Online Masters, send us an email to info@labasad.com and ask for more information about all our Online Masters.
