Ricardo Vega participates in the book "45 Symbols-Clay to Code" about the Festo Disc, the famous mystery of archeology.

How artists and designers develop systematic approaches to visual language: this is the question that guides the work behind "45 Symbols: From Clay to Code", the book in which Ricardo Vega, professor at the UC School of Design, collaborator of DiLab (UC School of Engineering), and PhD student at IMFD, participates.

Edited by designer and Parsons professor Pascal Glissmann, the book brings together works by artists and designers from around the world who visually reinterpret the graphics of the Festos Disc, one of the most enigmatic objects in the history of archaeology and media.

This 3700-year-old disk has 45 different symbols engraved on it that have not yet been deciphered, and have served as inspiration for these experiments in visual grammar.

45 Symbols-Clay to Code explores how emerging artists and designers develop systematic approaches to visual language. From personal narratives to global issues, the works presented demonstrate how an original visual grammar can be constructed.

Over more than a decade, The Phaistos Project-Forty-five Symbols international design seminars have evolved into a global community driven by open calls, workshops, exhibitions and risograph publications. This volume, 45 Symbols-Clay to Code, brings together over 2000 symbols as a result of this collaborative effort. It is not only a living archive of research, but also a testament to collective experimentation, bold visions and the expression of cross-cultural dialogue.

The book is available for pre-purchase and will be shipped upon publication in January 2026 at https://www.slanted.de/product/45-symbols-clay-to-code/.