Kyösti Varis
Born in Joensuu, Finland on 4th of January 1933
Professor, honoris causa

Career

Kyösti Varis had the basic training for his career in some printing houses in Lahti and Helsinki in Finland and in Hannover in Germany, where he was thoroughly initiated into typography.

His still works as a designer in 2010.

1955-57 2-year evening course at Ateneum, the Art College of Helsinki.
1957 Typographer at Studio Taucher in Helsinki.
1959- 67 Advertising artist, lay out and visualizising director and finally art director at Advertising Agency SEK in Helsinki.
1976 Chief of planning at Marketing Agency Viherjuuri.
1969 K.V. established Advertising Agency Varis, which soon became an authorized agency producing branded advertising. The agency was awarded prizes in several competitions, and was later known by the name Varis Poteri Veistola Oy.
1979 The Agency was sold to Aarno Salomaa Oy.
1984 Kyösti Varis, Kirsti Varis and Esa Ojala established an agency specializing in corporate identity design. In the course of the following ten years the agency helped several leading Finnish enterprises, for instance Nokia, Alko, Cultor, Isku, the Hotel Hesperia, Tukkuportti, and Carrols in creating their corporate identities.
1994 The agency was sold to Marketing Agency Viherjuuri, and thereafter Kyösti Varis has been working for Varis Original Oy,established in 1990.
   
Public Acknowledgements
1968 Grant awarded by Ulkomainos Oy and Nordiska Tecknare for promoting Finnish poster art.
1969 Grant awarded by the City of Helsinki to artists.
1978 Monitaho” award presented by The Association of Advertisers to a creative person for his important work in the field of advertising and marketing.
1979 Industrial Art Award presented by the State of Finland to designers.
1993 Kyösti Varis was mentioned among 100 leading graphic artists in the jubilee publication of the Japanese magazine Idea.
1996 Platinum Top”-prize, the most remarkable acknowledgement awarded by Grafia, the Finnish Designers´ Association
2002 The Graphic Artist of the year
2006 Knight, 1st Class, of the Order of the White Rose of Finland
   
The most remarkable domestic prizes
1961 First prize in the butter package competition of Valio.
1963-1980 22 certificates of honor in “the best poster of the year” competitions. Two posters were awarded first prize.
1969 First prize in the logo competition of Tuko for invited artists.
1977 First prize in the logo competition of SOK for invited artists.
1981 First prize in the Los Angeles-Sarajevo logo competition for in invited artists.
1982 First prize awarded for the Annual Report of Pohjola Concern.
   
The most remarkable foreign prizes
1968 Silver medal, Intenational Poster Biennial in Warsaw for the poster named “Cigarette Cross”.
1970 Grand Prix and gold medal, Biennial of Industrial Graphic Art at Brno, Poland for a set of three posters.
1970 Commendation of honor for the poster named “Your Lifemeter”, International Poster Biennial, Warsaw, Poland.
1964 First prize, Rizzoli Poster Competition for the poster named “Who lifts the Cat´s Tail”, created together with Eero Kinnunen, and second prize for the Arabia poster named “The Flame That Doesn´t Burn”
1976-81 Eleven certificates of honour at New York Creativity Award Annual Show for posters and logos.
   
Miscellaneous
 

- Jury member of several international and national competitions
- Works of art in numerous foreign museums
- Participation in all poster exhibitions in Finland
- Works presented in numerous international publications

   
Memberships
  - Member of Grafia (Association of Finnish Graphic Artists)
from 1961
-Invited member of AGI (Alliance Graphique
International) from 1974