KnowThyself — Heliosblue graphic design

Gnothi Seauton - Know Thyself
Book - Patterns - Posters

Created as a master’s research project in Graphic Design at LUCA School of Arts (Ghent), Gnothi Seauton was presented as a multi-disciplinary installation consisting of a publication, a series of four posters and a video projection.
What began as a quest for a personal graphic identity evolved into a philosophical exploration of the nature of identity itself. The core of this research is captured in a three-part publication: a study of generative patterns, a reimagined text of Homer's Odyssey, and a facsimile collection of the historical and theoretical works that inspired the research process.

Identity as a JourneyIn this work, the Odyssey is stripped of its status as a heroic epos and reimagined as a metaphor for self-exploration. Having moved from Greece to Belgium several years ago, I experienced firsthand how migration requires profound adaptation and a constant rediscovery of one’s self. The journey of Ulysses —spanning 24 rhapsodies— becomes a mirror for this experience: a path marked by challenges and internal shifts that contribute to the formation of a self. This transition is visualized through a new graphic language where the 24 Greek letters of the rhapsodies are replaced by 24 new pictograms. Each of them, returns language to its primal function: communicating ideas, —in this case the obstacles encountered on a journey "back home"— a homecoming to the true self.

Heritage and Mathematical DistillationThe visual foundation of the project stems from the discovery of parallels between my early abstract drawings and the recurring forms of ancient Greek ornamentation. This connection to my roots, combined with a meticulous search for order, led to the creation of an expansive library of patterns. Every composition is built from a single graphic element, expanded through mathematical systems such as the Golden Ratio, the Fibonacci series and the Vedic Square. The results are presented in a series of four posters. By overlaying multiple patterns, a massive density of lines is created, a visual symbol of the layering, evolution and complexity inherent in an individual identity.
The Vedic Square serves as the structural DNA for the project; it acts as the underlying grid for the 24 pictograms and provides the mathematical logic for the generation of the patterns. This system links the individual symbol to the infinite composition, balancing historical motifs with math-guided order.

*Heliosblue is the alias of graphic artist and designer Fiona Oikonomidou. She holds an MVA from LUCA School of Arts and is currently working as a freelancer.

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