Cristina gives a face to the village that (a year ago) did not exist

Graphic designer with infinite inspirations that come from art, architecture, love for her territory and above all from attention to people, which she puts at the center of her work, after 25 years of activity, Cristina Martinico has a big dream: to create a museum, a real cultural hub, which hosts valuable events and initiatives, giving communicative and social strength to the place where he lives and to which he has chosen to return, to bet on himself itself.

An imbued story of creativity and talent, which also saw her as a protagonist in northern Italy, for some years, engaged in various collaborations with colleagues from the Veneto in environments that certainly heralded advantages and professional growth, but which she chose to leave to return to home, animated by the great bond it has always had for the territory, and invest in its skills by starting its own business.

And right in her homeland, after varied experiences in different fields that have given her great satisfaction, she has recently created an important work for its uniqueness, because it is aimed at communicating its own identity, that is, the logo of the new Municipality of Misiliscemi. «Over the course of 25 years of design – he says – I have designed many logos, but this is my first heraldic coat of arms. A job that very rarely happens to those who deal with graphics.

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All projects remain in one’s professional history and in that of the clients who commission them, but this one will remain in history with a capital H.

Draw and paint hand-crafting the miniatures requested by the State Ceremonial Office for Honors was challenging: I had to try for hours to avoid imperfections as much as possible with the awareness that a mistake, even an accidental one, could have made me start all over again.

Unlike digital, which with a simple command erases the error and ultimately results in a clean project, this process was very different. This coat of arms was a professionally and personally relevant work for me, because I have always lived in this area and from the beginning I have supported the present and future of this new Municipality.

And the coat of arms of the Municipality of Misiliscemi represents the fusion of the history, of the environmental and architectural peculiarities of the eight districts that determined the birth of the new body”.

To define the emblem, the Municipal Administration proceeded under the careful guidance of the State Ceremonial and Honors Office. The creation of the coat of arms, designed respecting the rules of classical heraldry, was entrusted to Cristina with the consultancy for the identification of the elements considered to most characterize the territory in history, from Dr. Alberto Barbata, who has always been a great scholar of Misiliscemi.

The process to obtain the granting of the decree began in 2023 and among the documents to be sent were requested miniatures of the coat of arms and banner entirely drawn and painted by hand, as required by the procedure. Cristina Martinico’s professional path is rich in knowledge and experience.

After obtaining her artistic high school diploma at the Art School of Trapani, she graduated in Graphics at the European Institute of Design in Rome and in 1999 she started working as a freelance graphic designer.

In the same year he began his collaboration with the Gruppo Editoriale Il Pozzo di Giacobbe of Trapani, which he still continues by taking care of the graphic projects of the covers of various series.

In the same period he started an intense collaboration with the Press Office of the Diocese of Trapani, with which over the last few decades he has carried out many communication projects; again for the same institution he took care of the graphics for events and exhibitions linked to the Diart contemporary art collection.

From 2002 to 2006 he worked on all the projects created by the advertising agency MOOD Comunicazione e Design of Trapani, including several art catalogs for the Pepoli Regional Museum and an interactive CD-ROM.

Also with MOOD he edited a city guide for the Municipality of Trapani and several other projects on the occasion of the 2005 America’s Cup, the legendary sporting event that changed the face of the city.

Since 2014 he has collaborated on a stable basis with the San Rocco Museum of Contemporary Art and Cultural Centre, also in Trapani, for which he deals with communication and installation projects for the personal exhibitions that take place annually.

In 2017 Cristina won a competition announced by the Diocese of Trapani for the design of the logo of the Diocese itself. In 2020, during the lockdown period, she did not stop, and in collaboration with the Corso di Trapani bookshop she created a graphic line entirely decorated by hand: small artistic works created using the collage technique combined with acrylic paint and to ink drawing; images, illustrations and pages taken from old catalogues, books and magazines recycled and transformed into short stories to read. Each composition is a unique piece and the line includes paper bags, artistic collages, bookmarks and notebooks.

In 2022 he obtained certification as Art Manager at the European Institute of Innovation for Sustainability and also in 2022 he launched, together with Asso Informatica, a portal dedicated to the promotion, traditions and culture of the new Municipality of Misiliscemi, for which deals with the production and collection of content as well as graphics.

Over the course of 25 years of activity as a freelancer, she has managed communication projects for companies, private individuals, associations and organisations, both in the artistic-cultural, tourist and commercial fields.

She collaborated in the creation of various campaigns also during electoral competitions, including the one that led to the victory of the current mayor of Misiliscemi, Salvatore Tallarita, and for which she was art director.

She also worked on art catalogs and communications for shows and exhibitions; you collaborated with Trapani Welcome for ‘Stragusto’, the international street food exhibition, and participated in European fairs dedicated to tourism. At a national level you have created projects for professionals and companies even outside the Trapani area as well as for CGIL and CEI.

«The area of ​​design that I prefer, however – he says – is that relating to communication linked to art and culture in general, and this is also why my dream concerns the idea that one day Misiliscemi too can have its own museum-cultural hub where to host 360-degree exhibitions and events, but also a place dedicated to activities and workshops dedicated to young people.

I firmly believe that for its own development, every territory must necessarily have a place like this, a place that is alive and full of activities that revolve around it continuously.

A place that can be frequented first of all by citizens, who deserve, in addition to the necessary services offered by a territory, also to enjoy the beauty and knowledge just a few steps from home, without having to move elsewhere to enjoy them.”

The common thread of his thought and his creative production is always aimed at his roots, which is why on the coat of arms he designed and created for the Municipality of Misiliscemi he adds: «It was an absolutely unusual work because it concerns the field of heraldry classic, which does not fall within the usual designs that are requested from a graphic designer.

I had to carry out a study comparing myself with those who had the historical skills to help me identify all the most important elements to represent, but I did it with my heart and with an involvement that was not only professional but also completely personal, because I was born and raised in Misiliscemi , where I still live, I believe in and support the development of this territory which has beautiful natural characteristics and which is rich in many places that need to be enhanced with interventions that are certainly large, important, difficult, but I hope not impossible”.