Rouages: “Everything comes together to tell a story”
Thierry Vicente is a designer, layout artist, and graphic designer in the Campus Life Department. From the covers of Lum magazine to posters for major university events, as well as various brochures and logos, he shapes and signs the UM's image with his inimitable style. He tells us about his work this month in the video series Rouages produced by the University of Montpellier.
Some may not know his name or face, but anyone who works at the University of Montpellier cannot have failed to notice his art. From open day posters to UM T-shirts and the magnificent covers of Lum magazine, Thierry Vicente has been delighting our eyes for over ten years. After several seasons in communications, this illustrator, layout artist, and graphic designer now wields his brushes and pencils—now digital—within the Campus Life Department (DVC). Housed in Building 5 on the Triolet campus, the DVC brings together around fifty staff members "whose main mission is to contribute to the fulfillment of staff and students," summarizes Thierry Vicente, who works in the events and communications department.
Among the many ways in which this mission is carried out is the organization of flagship events that set the pace for the year at UM: the open house in February, the staff party in June, Christmas, etc. There are also awareness-raising initiatives such as Donner des Elles à l'UM(Empowering Women at UM), the week against racism and anti-Semitism, and the week against LGBT+ phobias. "Of course, I work with my management team on the organization and logistics of these major events, and even when the goal is to have fun, it requires a lot of work and investment to ensure that everyone can enjoy themselves and feel good," says Thierry Vicente.
Embody a vision
But beyond the actual organization of these events, it is in the creation of an imaginary world capable of delivering the desired message that the artist reveals himself. Who, when thinking of the Donner des Elles à l'UM event, has not seen in their mind's eye that midnight blue poster with calligraphy that seems so familiar to us today?"It's a typeface that I drew by hand, representing both a bird and the word 'elle' (she). This type of poster often depicts a woman or a character, but we wanted to move away from that so that everyone could identify with it," explains Thierry Vicente, for whom every communication medium is the subject of collective reflection.
Brochures, logos, guides, newsletters—everything related to the image of campus life passes through his hands... and his head. "Our department works directly with several vice presidents. We start with a vision that is projected by politicians and must be embodied in the various actions implemented by campus life, and therefore, for me, in a graphic implementation. " A UM logo revisited in rainbow colors for LGBT phobia awareness week, two gender-neutral hands crossed in an X to signal sexual and sexist violence, a hummingbird made of words for open house day, smiling faces for the fight against racism and anti-Semitism. "Here too, we wanted to break with the expected imagery. We often see protesting figures with raised fists. I chose to represent four characters, probably of different nationalities, in any case with different profiles; they form a group and they smile, and the slogan is: 'Smile at difference'.
Spotlight on the covers
Since 2015, Thierry Vicente has also been the pen, or rather the paintbrush, behind Lum magazine, which he illustrates and designs in collaboration with Caroline Macker, a graphic designer in the communications department. "Looking at the first and last covers, I can see that my work has evolved enormously. So have my tools! I started out using almost nothing but a mouse, but now I have the same digital painting tools that they use at Pixar and Disney, and a flip-up screen that lets me recapture the feeling of being a cartoonist."
Twenty-one covers in almost ten years, some of which have left a lasting impression on UM's image library: an orangutan clutching its baby (No. 8), a polar bear frolicking in the desert (No. 12), a boat flying the UM flag in a storm for a special COVID issue, an explorer probing the depths of the ocean (No. 18) or the forest for the particularly successful cover of the latest edition. "It's really the one I worked hardest on, I won't say how many hours, and I loved it! " But her favorite remains issue 3, a profile of a child, her daughter Eva. "There's an overlap between my professional and personal work. What I do at home and what I experience feeds into my work here at the university, and conversely, what I produce here enriches my personal practice."
Indoor library
And when you ask this enthusiast what he loves so much about his work, the answer comes quickly: "Telling a story! Light, shadow projection, composition, characters, environment... Everything contributes to telling a story, and that's something I've learned over time. " Thierry Vicente didn't hone his drawing skills in school, but as a self-taught artist, through observation, curiosity, and by accepting that he would make many mistakes. "When you want to do this job, it's a good idea to build up a large internal library in which you can store literature, graphic art, painting, and music. Everything that enriches us as human beings is an experience that will enable us to create, illustrate, and respond to a need for design."