A Different Texture of Reality
8in by 10in
Printed at Marvel Printing in St. Louis, MO, and at the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts
Bound at Done Dept. in St. Louis, MO with 22mm spiral
Typefaces: FF Yoga Pro, Harmonia, Harmonia Mono
SP 2023. Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign.
Advisor: Amy Auman
Select spreads.
For my senior design capstone project, I designed a 130-page book that acts as a translation of the synesthetic experience. Synesthesia is the neurological phenomenon where the stimulation in one sense can automatically and involuntarily trigger a sensation in another (i.e. colors and numbers could appear as colored, or sounds may be accompanied by perceived visuals). I have Spatial-Sequence Synesthesia and was inspired to select synesthesia as my capstone topic when it became evident during discussions of my synesthesia with friends and family that not very many people know much about the topic, despite its endlessly fascinating nature and its prevalence in our communities.
This book is separated into two main parts: the Experience and the Science. The Experience discusses what synesthesia is and the five main forms. The Science explores the research and testing over the past few decades that have established the validity of synesthesia. Both sections feature personal stories from synesthetes (people with synesthesia), and the book concludes with an index listing all forms of synesthesia.
The materiality of the book was important to me throughout the design process. In order to emulate the synesthetic experience, I utilized various production techniques and materials, ranging from blind debossing, grommet-edged paper, and a variety of paper (transparent, vellum, speckled, and kraft).