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NHow can graphic design intervention
enhance the reading of a story?
Breaking the fourth wall in reading
with graphic design intervention is not
a common thing in literature publishing.
In this project I want to develop an
understanding of the relationship between
the designer, the reader, the viewer
experience and the visual outcome itself.
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Saporta, M. Conposition No.1. Visual Editions
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My objective is to explore the possibilities
of visual writing, or translation in the
context of fiction. With this project I want
to try to break the fourth wall by using
tools of typographic design, and affect the
way the viewer engages with the designed
outcome and control the intended viewer
experience and response.
By doing this project I hope to learn to
manage viewer experience, which is an
invaluable aspect of the communication
process. I hope to achieve an outcome
that will break the fourth wall between
the reader and the story not by creating
a clear window for the reader to enter
book space, but to create a designed story
space, where the design will be a part in
communicating the message.
Another aim of this project is to
personally understand some aspects of
the relationship between the designer
and their outcome, and what direction my
practice of graphic design itself might be
taking in the future.
Technological advances have meant
that programmes and some design skills
have become available to a wide audience
and some customers have become pseudo
designers themselves. This raises concerns
that some services provided by graphic
design are no longer what a lot of the
organisations require and the future of
the trade and its definition may need to
be reconsidered (I Chilvers 2012, pers.
Comm., 21 Mar.).
However, graphic designers should
not be valued only for their art working
skills, but also for the design thinking.
Apart from a finished designed outcome
the designer offers knowledge of the
market, place, time, patterning skills,
understanding of human psychology etc.
Design can be valuable for it’s thinking
style alone (Golsby-Smith 1966, p. 274).
Golsby-Smith was referring to
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designers working as creative thinkers at
organisations, but I think that the same
ideas can be used in pushing graphic
design practice forward. For this I need to
myself understand what this thinking style
is and how it can be incorporated in the
future of design and visual writing.
Sterne, L. The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman. Penguin Classics
Sterne, L. The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman. Visual Editions
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I hope for this project to be valuable not
only personally, but also to designers.
It will also contribute to designers
understanding of visual storytelling in
terms of typographic design as opposed to
the traditional use of illustration.
Foer, J. S. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. Houghton Mifflin
Brian Heffernan. Hacked Language
CON
TEXT
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The general areas that I am going to
be working within are translation and
remediation. An examination of translation
theory and an analysis of its processes will
benefit my understanding of remediation
of literature into a visual form.
Exploring the translator’s methods
and processes of managing the reader
experience and understanding where to
apply certain methods or bring in personal
interpretations will enable me to apply
those processes into the graphic design
practice where applicable.
Having a general understanding of the
traditional translation theories of language
and other types of remediation processes
such as play and script writing will directly
affect the development and chosen
methods of interference to the text.
I will explore the visual codes that have
been developed and have become a habit
in design and investigate how valuable
and binding they are in visual writing.
An example of such a habit is the use of
a light bulb in design today to indicate
the birth of an idea. It is possible that
some of these denotations are an easy
way in portraying a shared language or
a familiar translation of text into a visual
form without exploring its meaning any
further from it’s commercial familiarity
(Wozencroft 1988, p.5).
Design has created its own system of
visual clichés that present themselves as
‘actual’ or natural rather than ‘imagined’
or created but there is an increasing
amount of hybrid novels being published,
where design is integrated in the text,
that challenge these semiotics (Sadokierski
2009, p.12).
As the modern world is becoming
extensively visual in its communication
styles, the people have had to gain acuity
in reading these visual messages. “’Visual
literacy’ is a necessary competency of
members of contemporary society”
(Sadokierski 2009, p.15).
Visual literacy has become intuitive
and exploring that in the relatively new
territory of visual writing feels like the
natural step in exploring the possibilities
of these changes.
Stevenson, L. S. Strange case of dr Jekyll and mr Hyde. Alberto Hernandez
ACT
ION
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NEnquiries to undertake in order to address
the research question:
What is the most appropriate choice of
text for this project? A novel, an extract,
a short story, a folk tale that has no solid
form, a myth, a poem, a play, a movie, an
episode etc.?
The text chosen should have strong
enough themes for material to work with
and it should have aspects that I personally
feel passionate about, so the outcome can
in turn be personal and truthful. The text
needs to be of an appropriate length given
the time restriction of completion of the
project and the possible interventions and
research in investigating the remediation
possibilities to be interrogated in that
time. The story chosen should be whole
rather than an extract, or a chapter from a
work, as that might cut the idea, and take
it out of context.
I like the idea of taking a folk tale or a
myth that I could retell in my own visual
way, without having to worry about really
reflecting what the author of the story
wanted to portray, and I could myself
become the storyteller.
After looking into mythologies and
legends of different countries I decided
to choose a legend from one of the Finnic
peoples.
Having been brought up in Finland,
I relate to the stories and find them
thoughtful and beautiful. There are a few
stories I am considering working with. One
is a Sámi legend about the four winds,
which explains the creation of the four
seasons. Another, better known one is
from the Finnish epos Kalevala, and tells
about the creation of the world. The loon
as the accidental creator of the world as
we know it now is a common theme in
northern mythology. I would like to read
up more on this before choosing the final
story to work with. (I Timakov 2012, pers.
Comm., 7 Apr.).
What are the possible mediums in creation
of hybrid storytelling? What is the most
appropriate one for this specific project? Is
there more than one possible medium?
How can I use word and image interaction
with typographic devices in creation of
hybrid texts that enhance the reader/
viewer experience?
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Carr, E. My unborn daughter. Briana Garelli
SCH
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18th Apr. – 25th Apr.
Secondary research:
Reading up on what has been done in the
field of visual writing and hybrid novels
so far. This will include viewing blogs and
websites for inspiration and insight into
the visual language. I will also be looking
at books, conducting interviews and
looking at related visual material to help
me understand the subject and select the
appropriate text for me to work with. I
am interviewing Anna Gerber from Visual
editions on Mon. 23d.
25th Apr. – 19th Jun.
I will be stating on primary research
methods, and conducting graphic
experiments using graphic design
methods. These experiments most likely
correspond with some of the discoveries
I will have made in my previous research,
and through doing those some new
discoveries will be made. When an initial
understanding of dealing with the subject
first hand is done, I will be able to go
back to the major project proposal and
re-evaluate it. I will then write the major
project definition.
19th Jun. – 30st Jul.
Furthering primary research and personal
experimentation with visual writing
following the major project definition.
30st Jul. – 24th Aug.
During the summer break I will be visiting
family in Finland, which will be a good
opportunity to test my work on people,
and discuss some theories with people
I know there who work in the field of
translation. It will also be a good time to
look at Scandinavian design and browse
the design books shops there to see if
there are things there I missed in my
research from London. One week during
the break I will need to put the studies
completely on hold and attend to taking
care of a grandparent.
27th Aug. – 28th Sept.
Creating the final piece.
1st Oct. – 31st Oct.
Finalising the outcome, producing it,
checking and fixing mistakes if any.
1st Nov. – 7th Nov.
Adding finishing touches.
Markus Kraft. Raymond Queneau stilübungen
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ION
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I will evaluate the projects effectiveness
by testing it on potential viewers /
readers with increased acuity to visual
communication. I will ask for feedback in
how well or poorly it communicates and
what it communicates. In the evaluation of
my project I will need to see whether what
I intended to communicate and what the
reader experienced correspond.
I will also evaluate and see if I have
answered the issues I raised in “research
question – context” with the project.
Stevenson, L. S. Strange case of dr Jekyll and mr Hyde. Jung & Wenig
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Possible final resolutions are most likely a
printed book, but there is a possibility that
the best solution for the output will be an
e-book or even something else entirely,
like a graphic animation.
Shelley Jackson: Skin
Stevenson, L. S. Strange case of dr Jekyll and mr Hyde. Marius Hügli & Martin Kovacovsky
BIBL
IOG
RAPH
YRE
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ESTI
ON
Books I intend to look at in support to the
major project include:
Gerber, A. (2012) Interview with the
founder of Visual Editions Publishing.
London, April.
Golsby-Smith, T. (1996) Fourth-order
design: a practical perspective. In:
Buchanan, R., Doordan, D. & Margolin,
V. The designed world. Images, object,
environments. Oxford: Berg
Hayles, N.K. (2002) Writing machines,
Massachusetts: The MIT Press.
Hernandez, A. (2009) Hybrid novels: A
new way of reading narrative fiction, MA
thesis, University of the Arts London.
Hernandez, A., Serrano, M. & Stavro,
A. (2012) The publishing lab [Internet].
Available from: < http://thepublishinglab.
tumblr.com/> [Accessed April 2012].
Kress, G. & Van Leeuwen, T. (2005)
Reading images: The grammar of visual
design. 8th ed. Suffolk, Routledge
Newark, Q. (2012) Interview with a
graphic designer. London, April.
Peacock, J. (2006) Ten poems form Hafez,
Lewes: Sylph Editions.
Ricoeur, P. (2006) On translation, New
York: Routledge.
Sadokierski, Z. (2009) Visual Writing:
A critique of graphic devices in hybrid
novels, from visual communication design
perspective, PhD thesis, University of
Technology, Sydney.
Steiner, G. (1976) After Babel, Oxford:
Oxford University Press.
Sweetapple, K. (2003) The rhetoric of
distance: a model of the visual narrator in
design, PhD thesis, University of western
Sydney.
Vidal, R. (2012) No Zines articles [Internet].
Available from: < http://www.nozines.
com/> [Accessed April 2012].
Quineau, R. (2009) Exercises in style.
London: Oneworld classics ltd.
BIBL
IOG
RAPH
YU
NIT
1.3
Chivers, I. (2012) Interview with a graphic
designer. London, 21 March.
Golsby-Smith, T. (1996) Fourth-order
design: a practical perspective. In:
Buchanan, R., Doordan, D. & Margolin,
V. The designed world. Images, object,
environments. Oxford: Berg
Sadokierski, Z. (2009) Visual Writing:
A critique of graphic devices in hybrid
novels, from visual communication design
perspective, PhD thesis, University of
Technology, Sydney.
Timakov, I. (2012) Interview with a
historian & philologist. Helsinki, 7 April.