The A Matter of Experiences Exhibition which was held at the SD Gallery for last two weeks, has concluded yesterday.
Exhibited were the works done by the year-one students of BA(Hons) in Design (Visual Communication) for the 10-week subject “Book and Publication”. The exhibits were the outcome of the first 5 weeks which covers bookmaking, toolbox or portfolio, A4/A3-size booklet and poster-booklet.
The aim of this first part of the subject is to enhance the students’ tangible experience of making a book/box with physical materials. It is a prelude, intended to strengthen their individual sensitivity for designing a book with special attention to texture, color, line, plane, form and space (printed/digital elements). Emphasis is placed on a conceptual understanding of a simple sheet of paper. This is essential for an in-depth understanding of how a sequence of papers relate to book design. Including texts and images, methods of cutting and folding, and considering time and space, all of which become the visible and the invisible elements of the works exhibited. The three assignments were to design an A4 and an A3 booklet and a poster-booklet which gives the students a practice for generating original printed publications, and for finding access to developing their own philosophy and concept for creating.
The exhibition was curated by Esther LIU, Associate Professor of School of Design.
Participants included:
Jonathan MAK
“Surprise the reader without abandoning the basics. Look at it from another angle. Do not be afraid to turn ideas on their head.”
CHONG Tak Sam
“I think I really do better when I have a concept so that I can like it and put more emotion into it. If you can match the things right, it will create a feeling that you can’t describe.”
HO Lut Hin Ricky
“….was the sense of achievement and self satisfaction that counts. It gave me some form of energy, which motivated me to work faster and be more precise in decision making. Making accurate and precise measurement, time management and being patient is really important. Practice makes perfection, always bear that in mind ‘No Pain, No Gain’.”
Alex LAU
“My discoveries:
Don’t think, just do it.
Creation is a process
Communication is the ultimate goal
Not to let the hidden inspirations be buried because of my insensitivity.
Practice makes perfect, lazy makes deficient
It was a “practice makes perfect” situation
Don’t get yourself bored—keep trying, and there is no good or bad nor right or wrong
I wanted to keep myself excited and enthusiastic about book making. There should not be any boundaries, everything was just part of the experience.”
LEE Yin Chung Kaliz
“I have some breakthroughs and also have a hard time of making decisions. I used to “design” by using computer software like illustrator and Photoshop as I could get things done easily. Then the book making exercises are like triggers for me to use hands to feel the paper. I was fascinated by all the possibilities and therefore I started experimenting book forms. I should point out that I STRUGGLE A LOT. “
Che Lau Carman
“I admit that there is nothing perfect in the world, so if we are satisfied with a work, it would be our definition of ‘perfect’. The interesting thing is that everybody has a different definition, and how to enhance this “perfect’s definition” is concentration and passion for the work. “
CHAN Kit San
“….not craftsmanship, but an attitude and patience of doing something.”
CHIU Chi Wah Jennifer
“Making books is all about patience, the first step is to love what you are making. I am not willing to make gorgeous or splendid books, what I am really looking for is the ability to point at each of my books and confidently say: THE BOOK IS MINE.”
LIN Rongwei Ron
“I do enjoy the process of book making despite that my craftsmanship is not that great. Thus, from those books that I made, I ventured a step further to play with more materials, types of folding and the choice of papers, so this new experience acts as a drive to push me through.”
The hand-made books with Chinese non-adhesive binding and special chosen materials to appeal individual visual sensitivity of students.
Michael Pang, VC year 1 students, shared his poster-booklet design with the tutor and students from Higher Diploma program.
A close up of two toolboxes and a few poster-booklets on the boards behind them.
The mini poster-booklets: one side is a full poster (A1 size), the other side is a booklet created with folding and cutting to achieve a sequence of pages as a booklet.
