Cultural Differences
A publication giving international students an impression of what to expect when moving to the University of Plymouth.
The brief was to create something that offers international students at the University of Plymouth an insight into what they can expect from moving to and living in Plymouth. Using my experience as a Dutch girl studying in the UK, I created a publication based on the things I miss on either side of the pond. With subjects ranging from food and transport to untranslatable words. The publication consists of different sized spreads, to allude to a collection of experiences. The idea is that this is the start of a series of books, each created for a different country, based on the experiences of international students in the UK.
As all the content is based on personal experience, I wanted to communicate this in the design as well. By writing comments by hand, I got to show the differences in a clear and simple way.
The cover is made out of tracing paper, allowing the cover design to play with the layered element of the publication.
The piece is handbound, using a coptic stitch.
Using handwriting gives the design a more playful touch, reinforced by the differently sized spreads. It aims to communicate that this is a collection of personal thoughts and experiences, which could be different for each person.
To make each spread ever so slightly unique, I played around with different techniques to illustrate. These illustrations are made using linocuts.
Each subject has a translation to the other language, which gives a hint to the language differences.
2nd year University work.
