Digital Collage, Poster Design and Stephan Bundi: The Semiotic Analysis of Theatre Posters

The aim of this study is to assess the single expression in approaching the traditional and digital methods for the design of cultural based posters like theatrical posters in consideration with the posters as a graphic design tool. The digital collage, which is the way of expression created in the early 20th century by the art movements and artists using collage as aroused on the computer screens other than canvas through the technology, has also been used in graphic design. The digital collage facilitates the reflection of artist’s imagination to the screen by means of technology, allows the traditional collage to be used together with the digital. The semiotic analysis of theatre posters designed by Stephan Bundi between the years of 2012- 2015, who is considered as the one of the first users of these two methods, was conducted within the scope of study. The graphic codes utilized were analysed and the climaxes in the theatrical scripts were addressed in a single expression with these two styles. The posters designed within this period by Bundi, who had used the traditional collage and digital collage that considered as two different ways of expression in his cultural posters, were analysed on the basis of Peircian sign theory, through the use of icon, index and symbols, and their interpretation was elaborated accordingly. As a result of this study, the findings indicated that Bundi made two different styles into one way of expression, used the traditional methods together with digital collage in graphic design, chose the colour in posters in accordance with the content of play and interpreted the content in the cultural posters designed by the poster designer with his own style through digital collage method. In consideration with the analysed posters of Bundi, his frequent use of icon that is given under the Peircian sign theory was stood out.