Sophie Ardern
Awaken
Instagram @s.e.a_design
Navigating through different directions
Awakening takes place within. 'Awaken' - to become awake or conscious.
After noticing that people are losing sight of the importance of connection and are drifting from an honest projection of themselves within our digital age. I have created this project to re-work information and encourage others to explore and live intently within their surroundings. Allowing the space and time to wander through unfamiliar terrain and journey down different pathways encourages ‘awakening’ moments. In these moments you become aware of something you haven’t noticed or thought about.
‘Awaken’ is a heuristic-led enquiry activated by embodiment. This project is framed around the question of: “How might I honestly depict my own embodied world, to awaken others?” The question is framed in a way that allows the researcher to produce work in an organic and honest manner. I draw upon my knowledge and experience gained from my childhood to inform my creative design direction.
Experimenting with found materials to form connections between texture, design, and stories; ‘Awaken’ is orientated within the physical and metaphorical idea of a compass. The publication further unpacks the directions of North - place, East - nostalgia, South - storytelling, and West - texture.
Working in between the threshold of Fine Arts and Communication Design, I used various experimental techniques to produce the ‘Awaken’ publication and series of posters. The publication integrates physical, textural van dyke exposed prints and layered transparent imagery. Each chapter is divided with laser-cut arrows to distinguish and guide the reader. The publication conjures up old imagery, personal poems, stories, and connections between materials in different places.
The series of posters uncover texture through layered photographic van dyke prints and laser-cut details which you can look through. These fragmented and typographic details are kept organic to represent the earth and layers of complexity within ‘Awaken.’
I hope to awaken you to your surroundings.
