Self-Portrait as Information Design:
An Unfinished Symphony
Graduate Design Studio I:
Self Portrait as Information Design -
"An Unfinished Symphony"
Dimensions: 48" x 24"
Software: Adobe Illustrator
Categories: information design, typography, type as image, poster, music, macro-to-micro
View full-sized poster | View process book
We were tasked with creating a self-portrait through information design, employing Richard Saul Wurman's LATCH framework.
After numerous ideas and iterations, I decided to tap into my strong interest in classical music performance, and used the preexisting framework of written music. I transcribed the main melody of the "Largo" movement of Dvořák's 9th Symphony ("From The New World"), one of my favorites.
The sheet music is almost completely constructed out of text. Each measure/bar is a period of my life, with the ledger lines in the background providing a running commentary of what was happening in my life during that time. The notes are significant or memorable events from within the time period/measure.
I made the conscious decision to construct this as a macro-to-micro metaphor. On the surface, it appears to be standard sheet music, just as it is easy to make assumptions and discern general information about a person based on his or her appearance. Once you delve a little deeper, though, you start discovering extra layers and gems of unique and personal information.