World Standards Day poster 2011

About the artist : Caterina Fiorani

Caterina Fiorani is a young architect, working as an independent architecture and planning professional in Rome.This is how she explains the inspiration for her poster: “There are some gestures that have universal value: one of them is the open hand, which may indicate greeting, welcome, the reassurance of a peaceful attitude, a deep confidence in human skills.

“Two open hands in contact suggest honesty, and the helpfulness of man towards other human beings, which makes it possible to cooperate for a common purpose. Moreover, two hands recall the concept of work which is the principal tool through which man can achieve quality in his production, with the essential aid of International Standards, a necessary and powerful help to reach excellence.

“The whole world is represented through dots, a standardized graphic sign which symbolizes the hope for equal dignity for human beings all around the globe.The use of colour emphasizes local differences as an added value that must never be forgotten.”

About the WSD 2011 poster competition

For the first time, the World Standards Day poster was the result of a competition organized by the World Standards Cooperation (WSC). It attracted 45 entries and 2 000 votes.

Open to all, the competition was to design a poster for World Standards Day, 14 October, on the theme, “International Standards – Creating confidence globally”. The competition’s organizer, the WSC, comprises the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

First prize and winner of 1 500 Swiss francs went to Caterina Fiorani, (Italy).

Runners up who received 500 Swiss francs each are:

• The team of Alexandra Schoenitz,Eurydice Avoine,Cornell Gorgas and Thibaud Cerdan(France/Germany)
• Teguh Pribadi Adi Nugroho (Indonesia)
• Eva Kohl (Germany).

E. Avoine, C. Gorgas, T. Cerdan and A. Schoenitz	Teguh Pribadi Adi Nugroho	Eva Kohl

The competition was promoted via social media (Twitter, Facebook) and voting held online. It proved so popular that the deadline had to be extended to late May. The final competing entries were chosen by the WSC and displayed for voting on its Website.