Contribution Project + Bookmaking

The Contribution Project was a distinct experience as I have never been assigned such a project. Every student was given a digital folder of 60 photos that another student took. From this contribution, every student had to curate, manipulate and create a layout for a book that communicated a visual narrative.

Step 1: From the 60 photos I received, I curated around 12 photos that focused on Chinatown to build a narrative. I wanted to explore the idea of integrating and translating languages. In order to effectively integrate the two languages- Chinese and English, transparency became a key factor of my book.

Step 2: I translated Chinese into English and vice versa with proper guidance from a peer. For my prototype, I used a Sharpie on a transparent paper to translate Chinese into English. But, I realised that this did not look as professional as I wanted it to. However, printing on a transparent sheet would look neat, professional and legitimate.

Step 3: I transferred the words written in Sharpie into digital texts for printing.

Step 4: Finally, I wrote a synopsis of the narrative of the book and used spiral binding to bind the final version. The printed transparent sheets, and the spiral binding makes the book appear minimal and professional.

Step 5: Here is my final book-

 

Lost in Translation

“Language is the road map of a culture. It tells you where its people come from and where they are going.”

~Rita Mae Brown

New York City is known as a melting pot of culture. Walking around the streets of the city is synonymous to walking around the halls of a cultural museum. Visiting Chinatown is a unique experience. The overpacked streets, delicious smell of Chinese food, and the hoardings painted in Chinese characters welcome you to its immersive atmosphere. But, at the same time the unknown language can make you feel lost in its translation. The aim of my book is to integrate the unknown and known languages to embrace the diversified culture of New York City.