Faithful to its core mission and values, the Faculty of Information and Communication puts aesthetics and creativity at the heart of its student-centered initiatives. For this purpose, on Wednesday, November 10, 2021, Ms. Zeina Bassil, instructor at Antonine University (UA), received within her class “Comic Strips and Storyboard” two important figures in the world of arts, notably drawing, comics and filming:

- Ms. Karen Keyrouz, a multidisciplinary artist, who exhibited her work in many international festivals such as: Angoulême International Comics Festival, Lyon BD, BD Amiens and Cairo Comix. Her work talks about “Samandal Comics”, triggering students’ curiosity and social involvement in today’s issues, and
- Ms. Nour Hifaoui, an illustrator and comic artist based in Beirut and who tries to picture reality with a documentary approach. Her stories usually tackle social exclusion and social relations.

Both artists are members of Samandal association, a volunteer-based Lebanese NGO dedicated to the advancement of the art of comics. Samandal is an alternative platform for cultural and social issues, favoring the singular voice of the artist, graphic and narrative experiments and research that question language. Its publications are read in several languages, from right to left as from left to right, each time, with a new way of laying out the translations.

It was indeed a positive, valuable and engaging student experience in graphic design and advertising!