Date: 28th January 2015

Time: 01:00 pm

Venue: IDS, Building 8, GTU, 75 Kostava Street, Tbilisi

Event: Art as a Profession: Economic Opportunities and Threats

Format: Illustrated Lecture

Speaker: Eric Binder, American painter and animator, former post- production designer for Disney Corp.

Poster © Eric Binder

Eric has a very rich biography. Born in Panama from the American parents, he graduated Ringling College of Art and Design in Florida and went on to become a professional artist, but not only as a freelancer and illustrator: he also spent 13 years doing post-production design for Disney Corp. animated movies. In 2005 he and wife Amy, who also grew outside of the US – in Bolivia, and is also an illustrator, decided to sell their house in Virginia and travel around the world with their three sons. In 2007 they settled in Georgia and in 2009 opened their own pizzeria – Ronny’s Pizza, which is now a growing chain of restaurants in Tbilisi with delivery and takeaway services. A talented painter, over the creative life Eric tested his abilities in illustration, graphic design, animation, post-production and other areas of visual communication, so it was only natural that after the lecture Eric, who seems to have settled in Tbilisi and is a native English-speaker with an art education, was offered the post of another Visiting Professor, joining the ranks with Giga Khatiashvili - after Alex Velasco, the first design instructor of IDS and the author of its curriculum, finally left for India to continue tuition there.