Experiments in print I
A poster for a performance of Richard Wagnerās Tristan & Isolde.
The projects in the Experiments in print series are all poster designs, originally produced digitally using Adobe Illustrator. The purpose of Experiments in print was to select a printmaking medium that would better suit the graphics of each poster, and enhance their visual impact. As such, the series was an opportunity to familiarise myself with the technical and aesthetic qualities of different printmaking techniques, and to demonstrate the importance of the medium in the finished product.
The graphics of this poster allude to theme of the conflict between darkness and light, passion and reason, life and death that recurs throughout Wagnerās opera. Thus, the names of the title are formed from the negative (dark) space of the blue paper substrate, and the positive (light) space of the white ink applied to it. The letters of the names extend into both spaces, thus representing the ultimately failed attempt of the protagonists to unite.
The title assumes an undulating shape, illustrating the sea which is the backdrop to the opera. A red sun is reflected as a white moon in the surface of the water. The sigmoidal shape and symmetry of the synthesis in general reference the harmony and resonance associated with classical music. The typography (based on the Futura typeface) and the severe graphics are intended to emulate the aesthetic of German modernism and Bauhaus.
supervision: Michael Ochs, Vakalo Art & Design College
printing: screen printing, Camberwell College of Arts
