Yuri Catania was selected to create the visual identity for the Università della Svizzera Italiana's (USI) groundbreaking communication campaign, "Play Your Future." This innovative project seamlessly blends art, technology, and education, celebrating the potential and personal growth of students.
Known for his ephemeral street art and expertise in merging physical and digital mediums, Catania brought his signature style to this campaign. His work features black-and-white photographic portraits enhanced with vibrant over-paintings, symbolizing the natural process of growth and the unique potential within each individual. The chromatic and botanical elements in his art emphasize the diversity of academic journeys, with each faculty represented by a distinct color palette.
Catania’s ability to craft a dialogue between human subjects and natural motifs reflects the spirit of USI as a fertile ground for students to thrive and blossom, personally and academically.
USI Rector, Luisa Lambertini, statement: "I am grateful to Yuri Catania for visually expressing the growth of our students as a natural, dynamic, and personal process. USI offers precisely this: an inclusive space to grow, learn, engage internationally, and cultivate talent, setting the stage for their future."
Through this collaboration, Yuri Catania continues to redefine the boundaries of contemporary art, intertwining innovation and tradition in ways that inspire.
Explore the campaign and discover more.
Play your future at USI and Join Us: https://join.usi.ch/en/play-your-future#behind
The choice of flowers serves as a metaphor for USI as fertile ground where students can grow and bloom to their full potential. Each painting, enriched with vibrant colors, reflects the distinct identity of USI’s faculties: green for Economics, blue for Communication, yellow for Informatics, red for Biomedicine, gray for Architecture, and violet for Theology. This chromatic and botanical language underscores the uniqueness of every academic and personal development journey, creating a dialogue between the subject of the image and the artist’s intervention, which symbolizes growth.
Thanks to the augmented reality software Artivive, these images come to life with videos that narrate the personal experiences of the protagonists, illustrating how USI helped launch (Play) their journeys. Additionally, another layer of the original works is revealed only in the dark, through their interaction with UV light.
The communication campaign also includes artistic installations across USI’s campuses: five “Paste-up” artworks and a special installation to be unveiled during USI’s Open Day on May 10, 2025 (Universo: www.usi.ch/universo). The university community will actively participate in creating these artistic pieces, with moments dedicated to engaging the broader public, especially younger generations, who will have the opportunity to connect with the artist and contribute to his works.
Play your future Yuri Catania USI Università Svizzera Italiana