Designer Laura Csocsán is a 2022 graduate of the Master’s Program in Type Design at the École cantonale d’art de Lausanne (ECAL). She is the third recipient of the CHF 25,000 prize. The award is aimed at young designers, with the intention of identifying them early in their careers and support and encourage them in their development.

Jury Statement
The jury acknowledges Laura Csocsán for her profound and refreshing dedication to the field of typography and its numerous associated applications. Her sweeping exploration of typographic history and technological advancements allows her to uncover questions of form transmissions and social contexts. Her typographic approach is particularly impressive from a design perspective, as it integrates technologically supported typesetting systems and their related principles in striking ways. Furthermore, the jury recognizes potential in Laura Csocsán’s transdisciplinary engagement with the digital image sources of our time, extending beyond the classical approach of typography. The way Csocsán utilizes software «glitches» as a creative starting point for her work challenges and decenters the role of the designer, highlighting its contemporary relevance. Her project representation and presentation convey a promising impression of new and innovative impulses for visual communication in general, and specifically for typography.
The jury is convinced of the deserving potential of her work and her exceptional ability to expand the boundaries within this field of expertise.

About the Recipient
Laura Csocsán is an independent graphic and type designer currently based between Lausanne, Switzerland and Budapest, Hungary. Her practice starts where graphic and type design intersect. She regularly creates custom typographical solutions for clients and collaborators in the fields of music, culture, fashion, and art. While focusing on printed matter, magazines, books and identities, she also produces and distributes retail typefaces through Laura Csocsán Typefaces. Csocsán holds an MA in Type Design from ECAL.

Education
2020–2022 ECAL/L’école cantonale d’art de Lausanne, Type Design MA, Lausanne, CH
2015–2019 Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design, Graphic Design BA, Budapest, HU
2013–2015 Budai Drawing School, Drawing, Budapest, HU

Awards
2021, ECAL Prize, Casino Barriere of Montreaux Foundation Grant
2020, Wallpaper Magazine, Graduate Directory, Visual Communication
2019, It‘s Nice That, Graduates

Jury 2023
Manuel Krebs, Zurich (guest expert, designer and founder of the graphic design studio NORM)
Lars Müller (president of the foundation board)
Gabrielle Schaad (member of the foundation board)
Isabel Seiffert, Zurich (guest expert, designer and founder of the graphic design office OFFSHORE)
Jonas Voegeli (member of the foundation board, head of the jury)