booklet design: interpretive haiku poem
To design dynamic visual images by composing a non-literal visual system and typographic interpretive sequence. Content is derived from a traditional three-line Japanese haiku poem.
OBJECTIVE—
To create a cohesive visual system over eight √2 rectangles, I first researched haiku poems that feature directional elements, movement, and shape.
INITIAL RESEARCH
Blowing from the west,
fallen leaves gather,
in the east.
Yosa Busan
“Fallen Leaves”
HAIKU ETHOS:
“Fallen Leaves” follows the journey of life and explores themes of change, existence, and nature. This haiku reflects the aesthetic principles of Edo-period Japan, which emphasized simplicity, brevity, and the appreciation surrounding nature.
To visualize this haiku in a non-literal way, I began to sketch out multiple concept directions.
BRAINSTORMING & SKETCHING
Implied Imagery
Literal Imagery
SKETCHING FURTHER
Continuing on from my initial sketches, I decided to visualize a more detailed concept direction behind this haiku.
DIGITAL EXPLORATION
Digitally iterating my initial sketches to explore ways in which typography can relate to image.
IMPLIED SHAPES
Implied form of a leaf designed with line, shape, and color.
Implied form of wind to represent directional movement with line.
Implied form of type to represent leaves blowing in the wind.
COLORS
Autumn Yellow
245 211 0
Forest Green
91 137 76
White
255 255 255
The colors behind this haiku directly reflect its ethos: representing shifts in life. Autumn Yellow and Forest Green reflect the natural shift in nature from summer to fall. “Fallen Leaves” shifts from west to east. With these juxtaposing directions, the opportunity to experiment with directional forces and color begin to arise.
TYPOGRAPHY
A sans serif font that works best with headlines and large visual forms of information. This font dynamically adapts to line, shape, and color. The abstract forms of leaves, crisp fall winds, and colors that paint the trees create complexity behind this simplistic typeface.
FINAL BOOKLET
The final haiku combines the visual forms of its main theme—change—in a metaphoric way through angle, color, and shape.
