As part of Design Month in May, graphic designer and lecturer Tomislav Bobinec invited the artist duo Poster Rex – consisting of Lars Harmsen and Markus Lange – to Graz.
In their exhibition “Rebel Prints”, they took a clear stance: design is never neutral. Poster Rex have been critically examining social and political developments for over ten years. Their posters see themselves as a visual means of protest – powerful statements that call for action.
About Poster Rex
Founded in 2014 after a screen printing workshop in Cuba, Markus Lange and Lars Harmsen have been touring the world with mobile printing stations ever since. Together with local designers, they create experimental posters on current topics – always with attitude. The archive now comprises over 3,000 unique hand-printed pieces. Lars Harmsen has been teaching typography and editorial design at Dortmund University of Applied Sciences and Arts since 2011.
Print ‘n’ Dance – design as a collective experience
As part of the exhibition Rebel Prints and the International Design Week 2025, design was not just talked about – it was experienced live. The stage and print workshop merged into an open space for creative protest. Poster Rex invited students from FH JOANNEUM, artists from Ukraine and visitors to open jam sessions, where posters were designed together and printed on site.
Protest poster workshop
Designer and lecturer Illya Pavlov and Maria Norazian from Grafprom Studio led an intensive workshop session. As founders of the international triennial “The 4th Block”, they have decades of experience in visual activism. Together with participants, they created posters that do not remain silent – but make visible.
Also involved: WD-20
Information design alumnae Alexandra Wutzl and Lukas Diernberger – known as Studio WD-20 – also designed two workshop dates. Their focus: hand-printed textiles with wordplay and strong graphic language. Individual fabric motifs were created from color, idea and screen.
