CREATIVE SOLUTIONS FROM AROUND THE WORLD ARRIVE IN THE CITY ON THE VRBAS

More than 150 works from across the globe were submitted to this year’s International Poster Design Competition “Goran V. Janković,” organized by Aquarius Group from Banja Luka.

The theme of this year’s competition, #IAmNotAStereotype, was inspired by the name of a campaign conducted by Aquarius Group in June 2024, which focused on the stereotypes women face. These stereotypes often subject them to public scrutiny in various aspects of life.

Through this competition, the narrative expanded to address all forms of stereotypes, allowing young creatives to submit works tackling gender, age, religious, national, and other social prejudices. The aim was not only to highlight these issues through creativity but also to engage the public to join the conversation.

“Our competition bears the name of one of the founders of Aquarius, a pioneer of advertising in the Balkans, Goran V. Janković, who sadly left us too soon,” said Brankica Janković, Director of Aquarius. “A painter, designer, economist, professor, and founder of the Graphic Design Department at the Academy of Arts in Banja Luka, Goran was a cheerful and talented individual who fought throughout his career for boundless creativity and against division, prejudice, and stereotypes. With this competition, we wanted younger generations of artists to continue his mission in their unique way,” she added.

The theme #IAmNotAStereotype clearly resonated with young artists, evidenced by submissions from authors spanning various countries, from the region to Indonesia and China.

The expert jury, consisting of Prof. Dr. Mladen Miljanović (Academy of Arts – UNIBL, Intermedia Arts), Dejan Šijuk (Creative Director – Fuse), and Aleksandar Živanić (Creative Director – Aquarius), selected not only the top three works but a total of 31 entries to be showcased at an exhibition on December 2nd in Kamena Kuća, Banja Luka.

“I am thrilled we managed to transform this project, which is important to us in many ways and had a regional scope last year, into an international competition that attracted authors from around the world. It was genuinely challenging yet incredibly rewarding to select and award the best works,” said Živanić.

The best works will remain on display at Kamena Kuća until December 8th, allowing the public to view the 31 selected posters. During the exhibition's grand opening, the authors of the top three works will be officially announced, with cash prizes of 2,000, 1,000, and 500 KM awarded to the winners.