25000794's blog

Author: Anjali Sanu

  • Methods of Contextualising: Overview

  • Methods of Contextualizing: Written Prompt

    This brief allowed us to not only explore data visualization collectively but also understand how each member of our group perceives data. We began with individual explorations to gather insights into how each member reads and interprets the data provided to us. This exercise highlighted key differences in the way we read the same Excel sheet. My approach was primarily shaped by my difficulty with comprehending numbers and arithmetic. I designed graphs that helped me read the data more clearly, almost as if I were translating incomprehensible numbers into a visual language I understand. We then borrowed elements from each other’s work to create graphs and visuals that presented the data in complex and unique ways. By using the same data set and comparing our outcomes, we were able to isolate the effect of data on structure, navigating different ways in which the visual structures we create as designers shape perception and narrative.

    Bibliography:

    Hall, Peter A., and Patricio Dávila. Critical Visualization : Rethinking the Representation of Data, Bloomsbury Publishing USA, 2022. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/ual/detail.action?docID=7129763.

    W. E. B. du Bois’s Data Portraits : Visualizing Black America, edited by Whitney Battle-Baptiste, and Britt Rusert, Princeton Architectural Press, 2018. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/ual/detail.action?docID=5515147.

    OMA (n.d.) Diagrams. Available at: https://www.oma.com/projects/diagrams

    Anderson, B. (2006) ‘Census, Map, Museum’, in Imagined Communities. London: Verso, pp. 163–185.

    Queneau, R. (1998) Exercises in Style. London: John Calder. (First published 1947), pp. 9–16, 19–26.

  • Methods of Iterating: Overview

  • Methods of Iterating: Written Prompt

    Draft 1

    For this unit, I would like to copy a portion of Rich Fowler’s artwork titled Here and Now II 1. The artist frequently explores multi-layered, modern, abstract, and geometric forms in his work. Through this inquiry, I aim to explore the demand for perfection in print design shapes the outcome and what it means to be perfect or imperfect in printmaking. I also would like to explore how play transforms imperfections in print into avenues for exploration rather than limitations or failures.

    Lino printing is an unforgiving medium to work with. On one hand, it demands precision at every stage as each cut is irreversible, while on the other, it leaves space for experimentation and the acceptance of uncertainty. Unlike digital design tools, where mistakes can be instantly undone, lino printing requires a willingness to take risks. 

    Draft 2

    For this unit, I chose to copy a portion of Rich Fowler’s artwork titled Here and Now II 1. The artist frequently explores multi-layered, modern, abstract, and geometric forms in his work. Through this inquiry, I aim to explore how play functions as an important aspect of graphic design, and how it enhances understanding of a tool or medium one chooses to work with. I also explore how play transforms imperfections into avenues for exploration rather than limitations or failures.

    Lino printing is an unforgiving medium to work with. On one hand, it demands precision at every stage as each cut is irreversible, while on the other, it leaves space for experimentation and the acceptance of uncertainty. Unlike digital design tools, where mistakes can be instantly undone, lino printing requires a willingness to take risks.

    Charles Jencks and Nathan Silver’s concept of Adhocism (1972)2 advocates for improvisation, responsiveness and the creative use of available conditions. I often found myself unable to predict what the outcome of each print would look like even when ink was applied in the same way, pressure was evenly distributed, and layers were aligned consistently. Adhocism helped me reframe this imperfection and constraint as an opportunity rather than it becoming a shortcoming. In lino printing, unpredictability generates unique outcomes. The slight misalignments or inconsistencies in ink application becomes evidence of a process. 

    Draft 3

    For this unit, I chose to copy a portion of Rich Fowler’s artwork titled Here and Now II 1. The artist frequently explores multi-layered, modern, abstract, and geometric forms in his work. Through this inquiry, I aim to explore how play functions as an important aspect of graphic design, and how it enhances understanding of a tool or medium one chooses to work with. I also explore how play transforms imperfections into avenues for exploration rather than limitations or failures.

    Charles Jencks and Nathan Silver’s concept of Adhocism (1972)2 advocates for improvisation, responsiveness and the creative use of available conditions. I often found myself unable to predict what the outcome of each print would look like even when ink was applied in the same way, pressure was evenly distributed, and layers were aligned consistently. Adhocism helped me reframe this imperfection and constraint as an opportunity rather than it becoming a shortcoming. In lino printing, unpredictability generates unique outcomes. The slight misalignments or inconsistencies in ink application becomes evidence of a process. 

    Lino printing is an unforgiving medium to work with. On one hand, it demands precision at every stage as each cut is irreversible, while on the other, it leaves space for experimentation and the acceptance of uncertainty. In a way, it became a conversation between temporality and permanency. Permanency is most evident in the carving process itself. Each incision that I made into the lino block was irreversible and acted as a permanent record of my actions. Unlike digital tools, where I would have had the choice to edit forms and mistakes could be easily undone, lino carving demanded commitment at every cut. This sense of permanency made me feel more aware of the process and my intention with the linoleum and highlighted the materiality of the medium.

    In contrast, temporality emerged within the act of printing. Despite the permanence of the carved block, each print was transient and variable. Subtle changes in ink application, method of applying pressure, paper texture and alignment resulted in outcomes that could never be fully replicated. Even when attempting consistency, no two prints were truly identical. This unpredictability emphasises on the impermanent nature of each impression and positions each outcome as a moment rather than a fixed result that I was initially intending to achieve. In a way each copy became an original piece instead of a true replica.

    The idea of play bridges these two states. By engaging playfully with lino, the imperfections and inconsistencies transformed from failures into temporary events that contributed to my discovery and learning process. Experimenting with different papers and layouts allowed my process to remain open-ended and unpredictable, despite the permanent nature of the carved block. In a way, lino printing embodies a balance between permanence in decision-making and temporality in outcome. It encourages a mindset that values exploration, risk-taking and presence in the act of making. 

    References:

    1. lino (2024). Linocut Artist | Boarding All Rows. [online] Linocut Artist | Boarding All Rows. Available at: https://www.boardingallrows.com/blog/tag/lino+printing.
    2. Jencks, C. (1972). Adhocism; the Case for Improvisation [By] Charles Jencks [And] Nathan Silver.

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  • Methods of Translating: Written Prompt

    I chose to reitterate the content of Ian Lynam’s article titled “Why We Should Really Be Concerned About the Visual Identity for the Tokyo Olympics.”1 in the form of a descriptive and imaginary city fashioned after those in the book Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino2.

    Cities & Structures

    IN THE CITY of Olympia, people awaken beneath banners that are void of meaning. The walls, the workers’ uniforms, the tickets are decorated with patterns that have a purpose but no intent. Olympia hums a tune with no rhythm.

    The architects who laid the foundations for the city once dreamed of clarity. A city free from the labyrinth of ornamentalism and far away from what it used to be. A rebellion so strong that every signboard, crown and path was to be replaced with a series of simple shapes. A brand new engineering of order where every facade spoke of purpose and every line had meaning.

    The rebuilding of the city was not about making it look better but was about finding deep meaning through the journey of making it.

    Years passed and the ancestors moved on to the higher realms, leaving generation after generation to keep the spirit of this journey alive. Systems turned into intutions, form and content moved away from each other and the vision for the city became less modular. Thousands worked day and night to build the city in hopes of leaving marks for their generations to come, but in vain. The city that was meant to be built together with coherence and respect was reduced to a competition of power and labour. The leaders only dreamt to build a beautiful city: brilliant, triumphant, hollow.

    Today, dwellers of the city walk alongside walls covered in excellently drawn shapes and symbols that are void of language. Every dawn when the flag of the city is unfurled at the townhall, people gather in large numbers to witness the glory of a charming flag fluttering in the wind without a mast.

    Citations:
    1. Lynam, I. (2015). Why We Should Really Be Concerned About the Visual Identity for the Tokyo Olympics. [online] Medium. Available at: https://medium.com/@ianlynam/why-we-should-really-be-concerned-about-the-visual-identity-for-the-tokyo-olympics-969830d0e819 [Accessed 12 Nov. 2025].
    2. Calvino, I. (1972). Invisible Cities. London Vintage.

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  • Methods of Translating: Overview

  • Methods of Cataloguing: Written Prompt

    Italo Calvino in his book, Invisible Cities1, describes the city of Tamara as a melange of symbolisms. He constructs a vivid imagery of the city being shielded by its unusual use of symbols and signages that distract and barricade its visitors from truly understanding the reality of Tamara.

    Tamara is where things are not mere objects but images and signs of things representing other things.

    Mapping of all the symbols and their interpretations that draw a picture of Tamara..

    The catalogue I created in response to this seeks to mirror and extend Calvino’s semiotic world-building. It introduces time as an interpretive layer to emphasize that Tamara’s signage is shaped by historical processes and human repetition.

    While signs forbid people to enter alleys with wagons or urinate behind kiosks, the signs themselves symbolize the conception of law and order in the city or the desire of people to engage in disruptive or deviant activities. Signs representing other things evolve into symbols that reflect the temperament and legacy left behind by the citizens and visitors of Tamara over many years.

    Tamara is where things are not mere objects but images and signs of things representing other things that represent other things.

    Introducing ‘time’ as an axis to interpret the semiotics of Tamara

    In this way, Tamara exists simultaneously as a city of signs and a temporal archive. Its symbols not only communicate instructions or warnings but preserve a history of human interaction while guiding future interpretations.

    1. Calvino, I. (1972). Invisible Cities. London Vintage.

    Note: This is not a note but a symbol of the idea of completion of the written prompt.

  • Methods of Cataloguing: Overview

    To see the text of the proposed book in better clarity, click here 🙂

  • Methods of Investigating: Written Prompt

    My ongoing exploratory project titledThe Elmen Whispers and Other Tales shares conceptual common grounds with Georges Perec’s essays from Species of Spaces and Other Pieces 1 and Sophie Calle’s photographic project Suite Vénitienne 2.

    My research was guided by multiple days of naturalistic and covert observations that not only provided me with key discoveries about my location: The Rose Gardens at Hyde Park 3, but also guided me to gradually localise my study to one specific Elm tree that piqued my interest. In the beginning, I observed the role of an ‘information gatherer’ who was primarily invested in collecting multi-sensorial cues from her immediate surroundings. Perec, through examples of practical exercises, in his essay on ‘The Street’ also emphasises on the importance of flat observation and note-making in gathering critical insights about a location or an object.

    Image: Excerpt from Species of spaces and other pieces: Georges Perec( Pg 50 ) alongside observations made for The Elmen Whispers and Other Tales

    As the study progressed, my focus evolved from being an ‘information gatherer’ to an ‘information seeker’. My judgement of people’s behaviour patterns played a key role in the insights that I gathered from this phase. I questioned why people were, like me, drawn towards this particular tree that became the subject of my study. This runs parallel to the suggestion made by Perec to decipher one’s surroundings and question patterns and anomalies. This allowed me to accumulate a speculative map on the different paths of desires that would have led one to this tree. Perec’s work, thus, not only informed but guided the foundational processes of my investigative study.

    As I dug deeper into seeking answers to the many questions I had about the tree, I found myself becoming invasive. The tree’s canopy created a private cocoon in a public park and by being inside the tree I felt like the tree had an unsaid ‘space’ for only one group, couple or individual at a time. I felt like a spy, documenting the movement of people and the conversations they had aloud. I began to question my role as an observer and felt the need to take a step back to allow the natural flow of events under the tree. Calle’s work mirrors this tension, that I experienced, between curiosity and intrusion. Her idea of research gradually assuming the role of surveillance closely relates to the thematic concerns of my project. I tried to emulate this feeling through interactions in my project output by inviting the reader to be invasive for a few moments and look beyond what they can see on a surface level.

    As I stood back and looked at the Elm tree, I realised that I was not the only observer there. The tree itself has been an observer for ages, collecting stories wound in time that only the tree knows of. The tree became the observer that I, myself, ‘desired’ to be. I was merely a vessel through which the tree was able to share some of it’s whispers with the world.

    Citations:

    1. Georges Perec and Sturrock, J. (1997). Species of spaces and other pieces : Georges Perec. London: Penguin.
    2. Calle, S., Dany Barash, Hatfield, D. and Penwarden, C. (2015). Suite vénitienne. Los Angeles, Calif.: Siglio.
    3. www.royalparks.org.uk. (n.d.). The Rose Garden in Hyde Park | The Royal Parks. [online] Available at: https://www.royalparks.org.uk/visit/parks/hyde-park/rose-garden.

  • Methods of Investigating: Overview

    Click here to watch a short clip of the the proposed interaction 🙂