What do we do when we get stuck? We seek inspiration. Who Knows: Inspiration for the Uninspired is a personal body of work which documents my journey as a creator, and the hardships we all encounter along the road to discovering who we are.
For myself and many others, the onset of the pandemic was a catalyst for life changing events and revelations. This was to be my final project as a student at George Mason University; the culmination of years spent developing my skills as a designer. So, I decided to take an unorthodox approach by treating this project unlike any other.
Having always been inspired by the stories of others, I felt it was finally time to tell my own. My hope was that upon looking at the pages of this book; with its vividly depicted chaotic ramblings, the viewer could delve into a mind that is not unlike their own. Targeting those who sought to reinvigorate a passion for creating.
Front cover, Inside spreads, Back cover
Process
In the span of two months, I had to: write, illustrate, and design a fifty-page book. It’s success depended on my resourcefulness, organization, and time management skills. This was a complex, multiphase project.
After carefully considering what was important to me, the proposal and approval process marked the first step of this personal journey. This led to the construction of a saddle-stitch bound booklet that specified layouts, font and color palettes, text and paragraph styles, and content examples. I selected words and concepts I felt were essential in my own creative practice, establishing a sense of organization by laying it out alphabetically. To remain consistent, I maintained a strict use of shapes, text styles, and folios. Much of the illustration was done using Adobe Illustrator, while the overlays and editing of certain images was done in Adobe Photoshop. At times, what I envisioned required a hybrid of the two programs. In an extreme form of multitasking, I populated the content into InDesign while simultaneously managing numerous assets including the organization of twenty-five different art-boards and fonts, ensuring everything was within margins and accurate to print specifications. Time was of essence in order to meet strict submission deadlines to guarantee timely production of the book.
Conquer
Goal
Support
Want
RESULTS
A 6x6” perfect-bound book. An unconventional size for a book equally unconventional. It illustrates not only who I am as a creator, but who I am as a person. One of the biggest challenges I faced was attempting to create a visual representation of a feeling. Setting out to inspire others is no easy feat…we all find inspiration in different things. Each spread varied in aesthetic to appeal to individual tastes. Finding the perfect font was taxing and I could easily spend hours scavenging the internet. I learned to optimize my time, creating structure in my workflow.
This book taught me to embrace who I am as a creator and have confidence in my abilities. It gave me the courage to add value to my work because I don’t simply treat a project as a job, I become engrossed by it. Who Knows showcases my versatility as a designer and determination to persevere when confronted by obstacles.
If a single page from this book can capture the attention of a potential reader, the project will have been a success. Design is about where the eye flows, hooking in your audience, and above all: inspiring action.
