People

Chris Arning

Chris Arning, Co-Founder, Semiofest

Chris Arning is Founder and Director of Creative Semiotics, a boutique brand agency whose clients include the BBC, Netflix, Unilever, BMW Mini and Radio Centre. Chris was previously Head of Semiotics at Flamingo Research. He has taught Semiotics for the MA Module Brands and Meaning on Global Media Communications course at the University of Warwick. Chris is passionate about sharing ideas and connecting people around semiotics, as well as co-founding Semiofest he also set up the Semiotic Thinking Group on Linked In in 2010.

Chris is an artist and creative in his own right: poet, calligrapher, musician, passionate writer and blogger; he also performs as a performance poet at open mics.

 

Chris writes:

“I’ve been passionate about semiotics since encountering it at Flamingo Research in 2003. I got bitten by the semiotics bug studying at University of Toronto in 2005. I’ve been practicing semiotics ever since. I love semiotics because it is a humanist philosophy and helps us see the patterns in an ever more confusing world. I co-founded Semiofest because it struck me that there wasn’t any forum for semiotics practitioners to meet and share ideas. Semiofest provides not only a forum for knowledge transfer and professional development but also networking. Lucia, Hamsini and I made it happen in London in 2012. We advertised it on the internet and amazingly people got on flights from all over the world! What I love most about Semiofest is that every year we go somewhere to immerse ourselves in a new culture, but the spirit of sharing, open mindedness is the same. This is a special event: an event with soul!”


Other members

Lucia Laurent-Neva

Co-Founder, Semiofest

Luca Marchetti

Associate Research Professor, University of Quebec in Montreal

Gabriela Pedranti

Co-Founder, Semiotica Studio, Barcelona

Sarah Johnson

Principal, Athena Brand Wisdom, Toronto